Pathology Model Eye With Flexible Retina for Imaging Evaluation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing retinal imaging systems lack a comprehensive model eye capable of accurately mimicking diverse human eyes with various pathologies for effective evaluation, training, and diagnosis.
Innovation Solution
A model eye system is developed that includes a retinal cup, corneal plate, and dummy retina, where the dummy retina is fabricated with flexible material layers to mimic human retinal vasculature and can be printed with pathologies such as exudates, drusen, and hemorrhages, and the crystalline lens can be clouded to simulate cataracts, allowing for detailed simulation of ophthalmic conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a model eye is created to mimic human eyes for retinal camera evaluation, then the evaluation capability is improved, but the complexity of the device increases
Solution Approach 1:
The model eye is divided into separate functional components including a retinal cup, dummy retina with flexible material layers, crystalline lens, and corneal plate. Each component can be independently manufactured, assembled, and replaced, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining evaluation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The dummy retina uses flexible material layers printed with retinal vasculature patterns to create a simplified copy of the human retina structure. This allows the model eye to replicate essential retinal features without requiring a complete biological replica, balancing realism with manufacturing simplicity.
2Reliability
If the dummy retina is fabricated with multiple flexible material layers to mimic retinal vasculature, then the realism of the simulation is improved, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible material layers are printed with varying opacity parameters to differentially represent retinal vessels of different sizes. This parameter variation creates realistic vasculature appearance while using a single printing process, avoiding the need for multiple complex manufacturing steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The dummy retina combines multiple flexible material layers with different optical properties (transparency, opacity) to create a composite structure that mimics the complex light interaction in real retinas. This composite approach achieves biological realism while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through layering rather than complex monolithic fabrication.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the crystalline lens is clouded to simulate cataracts, then the pathology detection capability is improved, but the clarity of the lens is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The crystalline lens can be dynamically adjusted between clear and clouded states to simulate different pathological conditions. This dynamic capability allows the same lens component to serve multiple evaluation purposes, enhancing versatility without requiring multiple fixed lenses.
Solution Approach 2:
The lens clouding effect is achieved through optical property changes that simulate the appearance of cataracts. By modifying the lens's light transmission characteristics, the model can represent pathological states while maintaining the ability to return to a clear state for different evaluation scenarios.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the model eye includes diverse pathology simulations, then the diagnostic training value is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible material layers and optical components are designed to support multiple pathology simulations through a single integrated structure. The same retinal cup and lens assembly can represent different pathological conditions by adjusting optical properties and printed patterns, providing universal diagnostic training capability without requiring separate models for each pathology.
Data Source
AI summary
A model eye for evaluating a retinal imaging system includes a retinal cup, a corneal plate, and a dummy retina. The retinal cup includes an interior concave surface. The corneal plate mates to the retinal cup to define an interior cavity with the interior concave surface of the retinal cup. The dummy retina is formed from a flexible material layer attached to the interior concave surface. The dummy retina mimics a human retina and the flexible material layer includes a plurality of peripheral notches in a perimeter of the flexible material layer to aid the flexible material layer to conform to the interior concave surface.