Illumination Module with Adjustable Angular Shutter for Dermoscopy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Binocular optical systems are underutilized in dermatological diagnostics due to difficulties in positioning, lack of proper illumination, and loss of tridimensionality, which hinders precise evaluation of skin lesions in depth.
Innovation Solution
A modular illumination system using optical fibers arranged in a ring configuration with adjustable angle of incidence and shuttering capabilities, integrated with a binocular optical system, enabling precise focusing and tridimensional visualization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a binocular optical system is used for dermatological examination, then tridimensional visualization of the lesion is improved, but positioning difficulty and operation complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary positioning bracket that mediates between the binocular optical system and the examination area. This bracket serves as a mechanical intermediary that establishes and maintains the precise work distance required for optimal depth evaluation, eliminating the need for manual positioning adjustments by the operator.
Solution Approach 2:
The positioning bracket is designed with pre-established geometric parameters that automatically set the correct work distance when the module is attached. The preliminary configuration of the bracket's arm length and angle ensures that the optical system is positioned at the exact focal distance needed for accurate tridimensional visualization, before the examination begins.
2Illumination intensity
If conventional illumination is used, then lighting is provided, but angle of incidence is incorrect and penetration of horny layer is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The illumination system employs optical fibers positioned at specific locations around the examination area, each delivering light at locally optimized angles. The concentrator element creates a focused illumination zone with the precise 30-degree angle of incidence required for effective penetration of the horny layer, rather than uniform omnidirectional lighting.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the illumination parameters by controlling the angle of incidence through the geometric arrangement of optical fibers and the concentrator. By adjusting the spatial parameters of the light delivery system to achieve a 30-degree angle, the system optimizes light penetration into the skin's horny layer for enhanced dermoscopic imaging.
3Productivity
If digital systems are used, then image capture is simplified, but tridimensionality and depth perception are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adds the dimension of controlled lighting angles to the digital imaging system. By introducing illumination at specific angles (30 degrees) that create shadows and highlights, the system encodes depth information into the two-dimensional digital image, allowing depth perception to be recovered through the interaction of light with the lesion's three-dimensional surface topology.
Solution Approach 2:
The illumination module acts as an intermediary between the binocular optical system and the digital capture device. It provides structured lighting that preserves depth information, serving as a bridge that allows digital systems to capture tridimensional characteristics of lesions while maintaining high-speed image capture capabilities.
4Illumination intensity
If optical fibers are arranged in a ring configuration, then proper lighting and angle of incidence are achieved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The ring-shaped optical fiber module serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structured illumination at the correct angle, acts as a positioning reference for the optical system, and defines the examination field boundary. The concentrator element also serves dual purposes of light focusing and angular control. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, offsetting the structural complexity with functional integration.
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
Facilitates quick, safe, and precise dermoscopic examinations by ensuring proper lighting and constant focusing, enhancing the evaluation of skin lesion depth and optimizing diagnosis.
Implementation Method 1
an optical fibre bundle (6), equally spread at one of its ends along a circumference by a concentrator (5)
Implementation Method 2
a concentrator (5), which determines the angle of incidence of the light beam with the contact surface
Implementation Method 3
by the adjustment of the iris diaphragm (3), to shutter exactly the light beam on an arc portion of the circumference of the fibre optics ring (9), being thus able to create some shadows on the examined structure
Data Source
AI summary
The CONTACT MODULE (l /Tab."A") is connected to a binocular optical system. The fibre optics concentrator (5/Tab."A") with a particular spiral layout of the fibres to the connector (2/Tab."A"), connected to a suitable light source, lightens, by means of the immersed contact glass, (7/Tab."A"), the area to be examined to obtain the best light penetration and a tridimensional visualization. The light passing through the diaphragms (3 and 4/Tab."A") can be shuttered adjusting the intensity and the semi-circle of the concentrator (9/Tab."A"). The particular shape of the module permits an easy positioning on the area to be examined. The module finds its specific application in dermatology, for the examination of skin lesions. All the binocular optical systems actually used work with no-contact and the diffused light beam is perpendicular to the area to be visualized, in a way that makes them unsuitable for this purpose at present, even though they are the only systems that give the best definition.