Apparatus for obtaining images of cornea endothelium

An apparatus for obtaining visual images of cornea endothelium, comprising

• illumination means for illuminating and for flashing an eyeball surface of a patient eye through a slit-shaped aperture;
• magnification optical means for obtaining magnified, slit-shaped visual images of a subject portion of the eyeball surface via an objective lens based of the illumination means,
• a receiving optics for detecting a focusing of a cornea epithelium image and a cornea endothelium image obtained by the magnification optical means;
• a video camera provided in front of the eye for monitoring the eyeball surface;
• shifting means for moving an optical unit, which includes said illumination means, magnification optical means, receiving optics and video camera, toward the patient eye so as to obtain the focuses of the cornea epithelium and endothelium images;
• and
• image enhancing means for controlling detectability of the focusing of the cornea endothelium image by the receiving optics,
• wherein said receiving optics is arranged so that the cornea endothelium image focuses at a light receiving surface of the video camera when the focusing of the cornea endothelium image is detected by the receiving optics.

An apparatus for obtaining visual images of cornea endothelium, comprising

• illumination means for illuminating and for flashing an eyeball surface of a patient eye through a slit-shaped aperture;
• magnification optical means for obtaining magnified, slit-shaped visual images of a subject portion of the eyeball surface via an objective lens based of the illumination means;
• a receiving optics for detecting a focusing of a cornea epithelium image and a cornea endothelium image obtained by the magnification optical means;
• a video camera provided in front of the eye for monitoring the eyeball surface;
• and
• shifting means for moving an optical unit, which includes said illumination means, magnification optical means, receiving optics and video camera, toward the patient eye so as to obtain the focuses of the cornea epithelium and endothelium images, wherein
• a first receiving optics for detecting the focusing of the cornea endothelium image and a second receiving optics for detecting the focusing of the cornea epithelium image are provided;
• and
• said first receiving optics is arranged so that the cornea endothelium image focuses at a light receiving surface of the video camera when the focusing of the cornea endothelium image is detected by the first- receiving optics.