Contact lens fitting set assembly and automatic identification techniques
AssigneeAlcon Inc.
InventorsSimone Jacqueline Stad, Adam Kayser
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system and techniques for identifying an absence of any contact fitting lens in an user-friendly manner for automated replenishment. The system includes an assembly stocked with fitting lenses of know types that are depletable from known compartment locations of the assembly. Further, depletion of a compartment through the natural course of fitting lens distribution to customers results in the automatic display of a visual indicator at the corresponding compartment location. Thus, an imaging application of the front of the assembly may be utilized to immediately ascertain lens types of the assembly which are depleted. As a result, the image may be used to facilitate automatic replenishment of such depleted fitting lenses.
Claims15
A method of identifying an absence of the contact fitting lenses of a given type from a plurality of contact fitting lenses of different types, the method comprising:
- obtaining a stocked fitting set assembly comprising a case for supplying to an eye care professional, the assembly to accommodate at least one lens package of each of the different types of contact fitting lenses at a corresponding known compartment locations of the case;
- wherein the at least one lens package of the given type of contact fitting lenses in the corresponding known compartment location is employed for retaining a visual indicator, which is a hinged drop-down door, out of view within the corresponding known compartment prior to an automatic display thereof;
- depleting from the corresponding known compartment location the lens packages of the given type of contact fitting lenses;
- automatically swing downward to display the hinged drop-down door at the corresponding known compartment location emptied of all lens packages of the given type of contact fitting lenses due to the depleting, to provide an indication of the absence of the given type of contact fitting lenses, wherein displaying the drop-down door exposes the drop-down door at a front of the corresponding compartment location;
- and
- recording an image of a front of the assembly, the image including visual evidence of all compartment locations with lens packages of the different types of contact fitting lenses thereat and all compartment locations with the displayed drop-down door reflective of the absence of all lens packages of contact fitting lenses of the respective given type thereat.
A fitting set assembly comprising:
- a case for supplying to an eye care professional;
- a plurality of compartment locations of the case, each compartment location for accommodating at least one lens package of a respective known type of contact fitting lenses from a plurality of different types of contact fitting lenses of a fitting set;
- and
- a visual indicator, which is a hinged drop-down door, at each compartment location, each drop-down door configured to be retained invisibly by the at least one lens package of the respective known type of contact fitting lenses within the corresponding compartment when the at least one lens package of the respective known type of contact fitting lenses is present therein, wherein each drop-down door is further configured to automatically swing downward to visibly display the corresponding emptied compartment location to provide an indication of the absence of the respective known type of contact fitting lenses, thereby exposing the visual indicator at a front of the corresponding compartment location;
- and
- wherein a front view of the fitting set assembly supplies a single visual record of all compartments of the fitting set assembly with a said displayed drop-down door and being emptied of all respective lens packages of the respective known type of contact fitting lenses.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.