US 9,788,731 B2 · Optical endoluminal far-field microscopic imaging catheter

Abstract

An optical endoluminal far-field microscopic imaging catheter comprises a light generating system, a first light delivery conduit for propagating light generated by the light generating system and a light distributor configured to redirect light propagated by the delivery conduit into a direction of an object to be imaged. A discriminator is configured for capturing light reflected from the object incident on a window of the discriminator from a particular direction and transmitting only the light captured from the particular direction to a second light delivery conduit. A drive mechanism is configured to sweep the window through a plurality of directions in a predictable pattern for matching each light capture event in the window with a direction of the window during the event. An analyzer matches the direction of the window with an associated light capture event and generate a visible image based on a mosaic of the captured light.

An imaging system, comprising:

a light generating system;
a fiber optic cable for propagating light generated by the light generating system;
a means for redirecting light propagated by the fiber optic cable into a direction of an object to be imaged;
a directional light discriminator configured for capturing light reflected from the object incident on a window of the discriminator from a particular direction and transmitting only the light captured from the particular direction to a second fiber optic cable or into the same first fiber optic cable carrying a net signal that corresponds to multiple wavelengths of light, wherein the directional light discriminator comprises a selective window, the selective window comprising:
a transparent core having a first refractive index;
a transparent cladding around the transparent core having a second refractive index;
and
an opaque housing around the cladding;
wherein the second refractive index is between 0.001 and 0.030 less than the first refractive or is between 0.001 and 0.030 greater than the first refractive index;
a drive motor coupled to the window, configured for sweeping the window through a plurality of directions in a pattern for matching each light capture event in the window with a direction of the window during the event;
an optical to electrical conversion module configured for converting an optical signal corresponding to an light capture event into an electrical signal capable of being reconstructed into a visible image;
and
an optical light tube configured to receive a rotating optical light guide through a central bore, the optical light tube having channels distributed within a periphery of the optical light tube configured for receiving the fiber optic cable;
an analyzer coupled to the fiber optic cable, configured to match the direction of the window with an associated light capture event and generate a visible image based on a mosaic of the captured light;
wherein the optical light tube is configured to translate in a linear direction while maintaining a fixed rotational position;
wherein the drive motor is configured to spin the directional light discriminator during light capture events;
and
wherein the analyzer comprises a processor operable to reconstruct an image from reflected light data received from the directional light discriminator, by performing a reconstruction process comprising:
receiving rotation speed data of the directional light discriminator;
receiving light capture event rate data;
assigning a pixel value based on a signal generated by the light capture event;
assigning a first set of consecutive pixels to a first linear array based on the rotation speed data and the light capture event rate data;
assigning a second set of consecutive pixels to a second linear array adjacent to the first linear array based on the rotation speed data and the light capture event rate data;
and
repeating the steps of assigning consecutive pixels to subsequent linear arrays based on the rotation speed data and the light capture event rate data.

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Optical endoluminal far-field microscopic imaging catheter

Life of this patent

Optical endoluminal far-field microscopic imaging catheter

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims16