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AssigneeKoninklijke Philips N.V.
InventorsCornelis Reinder RONDA, Olaf Thomas Johan Antonie VERMEULEN, Lucas Petrus Henricus SCHEFFERS
Estimating the term…
An optical analysis of saliva or a fluid-saliva mixture is performed in order to check whether the saliva or fluid-saliva mixture contains blood, which allows for determining whether or not a person may suffer from gingivitis or another condition affecting gum health. Light received from a representative volume of fluid (23) containing saliva is detected and analyzed. The analysis involves determination of at least one measurement value of light received by a light-receiving unit (25) for only a single wavelength of the light, particularly a wavelength that is associated with high absorption by a constituent of blood. It this respect, it is practical if the light-receiving unit (25) is configured to receive reflected light back from the volume of fluid (23). The optical analysis may be performed real-time during an action in a person's mouth involving a gum agitation effect, or after such action has taken place, for example.
A system configured to provide an indication of a person's gum health on the basis of an evaluation of the presence of blood traces in a volume of fluid containing the person's saliva, the system comprising:
(canceled)
A method of providing an indication of a person's gum health on the basis of an evaluation of the presence of blood traces in a volume of fluid containing the person's saliva, the method comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.