Patent Application
20200124874
The present invention relates to user-wearable ophthalmic lenses having embedded elements, and more specifically, to use the embedded elements to conduct a calibration and customization sequence based upon user actions.
Near and far vision needs exist for all. In young non-presbyopic patients, the normal human crystalline lens has the ability to accommodate both near and far vision needs, and those viewing items are in focus. As one ages, the vision is compromised due to a decreasing ability to accommodate as one ages. This is called presbyopia.
The use of adaptive optics/powered lens products are positioned to address this and restore the ability to see items in focus. But what is required is knowing when to “activate/actuate” the optical power change. A manual indication or use of a key fob to signal when a power change is required is one way to accomplish this change. However, leveraging anatomical/biological conditions/signals may be more responsive, more user friendly and potentially more “natural” and thus more pleasant.
A number of things happen when we change our gaze from far to near. Our pupil size changes and our line of sight from each eye converges in the nasal direction coupled with a somewhat downward component as well. However, to sense/measure these items is difficult, one also needs to filter out certain other conditions or noise (e.g.: blinking, what to do when one is lying down, or head movements).
In reference to
At a minimum, sensing of multiple items may be required to remove/mitigate any false positive conditions that would indicate a power change is required when that is not the case. Use of an algorithm may be helpful. Additionally, threshold levels may vary from patient to patient, thus some form of calibration will likely be required as well.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for controlling functions in user-wearable ophthalmic lens having elements including at least one sensor, a system controller, communication elements, a calibration controller and a power source, the method includes causing the at least one sensor to provide control signals to the system controller; causing the at least one sensor to further provide calibration signals to the calibration controller; and the calibration controller conducting a calibration sequence based on the calibration signals from the at least one sensor as a result of user actions which are sensed by the at least one sensor and providing calibration control signals to the system controller.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a user-wearable ophthalmic lens includes: elements configured to be embedded within the user-wearable ophthalmic lens, the elements includes, at least one sensor; a system controller receiving control signals from the at least one sensor; a calibration controller receiving calibration signals from the at least one sensor; and the calibration controller being configured to conduct a calibration sequence based on the calibration signals from the at least one sensor as a result of user actions which are sensed by the at least one sensor and providing calibration control signals to the system controller.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a system includes: elements configured to be embedded within user-wearable ophthalmic lens, the elements includes, at least one sensor; a system controller receiving control signals from the at least one sensor; a calibration controller receiving calibration signals from the at least one sensor, the calibration controller being configured to conduct a calibration sequence based on the calibration signals from the at least one sensor as a result of user actions which are sensed by the at least one sensor and providing calibration control signals to the system controller, and; communication elements communicating with the elements and a smart phone to control the elements.
Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is applicable to other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the present invention may be embodied as a system, method or computer program product.
Because everyone's eyes are a bit different, (e.g.: pupil spacing and location, lens-on-eye position, etc.), even at a fixed close distance, initial vergence angles will differ from patient to patient. It may be important once the lenses are placed on the eye to calibrate what the initial vergence angle is, so that differences in this angle can be assessed while in service. This value can be used for subsequent calibration calculations.
Now referring to
A power source 113 supplies power to all of the above system elements. The power may be supplied from a battery, a primary cell, an energy harvester, or other suitable means as is known to one of ordinary skill in the art. Essentially, any type of power source 113 may be utilized to provide reliable power for all other components of the system. In an alternative embodiment, communication functionality is provided by an energy harvester that acts as the receiver for the time signal, for example in an alternative embodiment, the energy harvester is a solar cell or a radio frequency (RF) receiver, which receives both power and a time-base signal (or indication). In a further alternative embodiment, the energy harvester is an inductive charger, in which power is transferred in addition to data such as RFID. In one or more of these alternative embodiments, the time signal could be inherent in the harvested energy, for example N*60 Hz in inductive charging or lighting.
As another embodiment, the three-axis accelerometers can be replaced by a three-axis magnetometer. Calibration would be similar because each axis would potentially require calibration at each extreme of each axis.
In the context of using sensors to determine vergence, specifically accelerometers, there are opportunities to calibrate. Offsets, due to the micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and/or due to the electronics, mounting on the interposer, etc. can cause variations with the algorithms and thus cause some errors in the measurement of vergence. In addition, human anatomy from person to person is different. For instance, eye to eye space can vary from 50 to 70 mm and can cause a change in trigger points based on eye spacing alone. So there is a need to take some of these variables out of the measurement, thus calibration and customization performed by the current embodiment when the lenses are on the user. This serves to improve the user experience by both adding the preferences of the user and to reduce the dependencies of the above-mentioned variations.
The accelerometers (103, 105 and 107) measure acceleration both from quick movements and from gravity (9.81 m/s2). The multidimensional sensors (103, 105 and 107) usually produce a code that is in units of gravity (g). The determination of vergence depends on the measurement of gravity to determine position, but other methods may depend on the acceleration of the eye. There are going to be differences and inaccuracies that will require base calibration before use calibration.
The current embodiment uses three sensors on each lens. However, calibration may be done using two sensors, for example the X-axis accelerometer 103 and the Y-axis accelerometer 105. In at least one further embodiment, each accelerometer has a full scale plus, full scale minus, and zero position. The errors could be offset, linearity, and slope errors. A full calibration would calibrate to correct all three error sources for all of axes sensors being used.
One way to calibrate the sensors is to move them such that each axis is completely perpendicular with gravity, thus reading 1 g. Then the sensor would be turned 180 degrees and it should read −1 g. From two points, the slope and intercept can be calculated and used to calibrate. This is repeated for the other two sensors. This is an exhaustive way of calibrating the sensors and thus calibrating the vergence detection system.
Another way is to reduce the calibration effort for the lens by having the wearer do just one or two steps. One way is to have the wearer look forward, parallel to the floor, or at a distant wall. Measurements taken at this time can be used to determine the offset of each axis. Determining the offset for each axis in the area where the user will spend most of the time provides a greater benefit to maintain accuracy.
Given that everyone is a little different, customizable features can provide a better user experience for all users than a “one size fits all” approach. When using the lens with just two modes, accommodation and gaze, then at the point where there is a switch from gaze to accommodation one can have several parameters in addition to the switching threshold that would affect the user experience.
The threshold going from gaze to accommodation depends on the user, the user's eye condition, the magnification of the lens, and the tasks. For reading, the distance between the eye and a book is about 30 cm, where computer usage is about 50 cm. A threshold set for 30 cm would not work well for computer work, but 50 cm would work for both. However, this longer threshold could be problematic for other tasks by activating too early, depending on the magnification and the user's own eye condition. Thus, the ability to alter this threshold, both when the lens is first inserted and at any time afterwards as different circumstances could require different threshold points, provides the user customization to improve visibility and comfort. Even having several preset thresholds are possible and practical, where the user would choose using the interfaces described here to select a different threshold. In alternative embodiments, the user could alter the threshold or other parameters by re-calibrating as described hereafter.
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Custom Modes are common now in cars, i.e., sport, economy, etc. which allow the user to pick a mode based on anticipated activity where the system alters key parameters to provide the best experience. Custom Modes are also integrated into the lens of at least one embodiment. Calibration and customization settings can be optimized for a given mode of operation. If the user is working in the office, it is likely that the user will need to go between states (gaze and accommodation), or even between two different vergence distances because of the nature of the tasks. Changes in the threshold, hysteresis, noise immunity, and possible head positions would occur to provide quicker transitions, possible intermediate vergence positions, and optimization for computer tasks, as well as, tasks that there is a lot if switching between gaze and accommodation. Thus, options to switch the lens into different modes to optimize the lens operation can provide an enhanced user experience. Furthermore, in an “Exercise” mode, the noise filtering is increased to prevent false triggering and additional duration of positive signal is required before switching to prevent false switching of the lens being triggered by stray glances while running. A “Driving” mode might have the lens being configured for distant use or on a manual override only. Of course, various other modes that could be derived as part of some of the embodiments of the present invention.
In today's world, a smartphone is becoming a person's personal communications, library, payment device, and connection to the world. Applications (or apps) on the smartphone or tablet cover many areas and are widely used. One possible way to interact with the lens(es) in at least one embodiment is to use an application. The application could provide ease of use where written language instructions are used and the user can interact with the app providing clear instructions, information, and feedback. Voice activation options may also be included. For instance, the app provides the prompting for the sensor calibrations by instructing the user to look forward and prompting the user to acknowledge the process start. The app could provide feedback to the user to improve the calibration and instruct the user what to do if the calibration is not accurate enough for optimal operation. This would enhance the user experience.
Additional indicators, if the smartphone or tablet was not available, can be simple responses from the system to indicate start of a calibration cycle, successful completion, and unsuccessful completion. Methods to indicate operation include, but not limited to, blinking lights, vibrating haptics drivers, and activating the lens. Various patterns of activation of these methods could be interpreted by the user to understand the status of the lens. The user can use various methods to signal the lens that he/she is ready to start or other acknowledgements. For instance, the lens could be opened and inserted into the eyes awaiting a command. Blinks or even closing one's eyes could start the process. The lens then would signal the user that it is starting and then when it finishes. If the lens requires a follow-up, it signals the user and the user signals back with a blink or eye closing.
Referring to
Other embodiments to customize the threshold can be accomplished. One way is to have the user's doctor determine the comfortable distance for the user by measuring the distance between the eyes of the patent and the typical distances for certain tasks, and then calculate the threshold. From there, using trial and error methods, the comfortable distance can be tuned further. Various thresholds can be programmed into the lens and the user can select the task appropriate threshold.
Another method is to allow the user to select his/her threshold—the user's preference of when to activate the extra lens power. The lens can use the same system that it uses to measure the user's relative eye position to set the accommodation threshold. There is an overlap where the user's eyes can accommodate unassisted to see adequately and where the user's eyes also can see adequately with the extra power when the lens is active. Providing a means for the user to set this threshold improves the comfort and utility of the lenses. The procedure follows this sequence:
To have a good user experience, the user needs to have a confirmation that the system has completed any adjustments or customization. In addition, the system needs to determine if the user performed these tasks properly and if not, and then request that the user preforms the procedure again. Such cases may include excessive movement during measurement, head not straight, lens out of tolerance, etc. The interactive experience will result in far less frustrated or unhappy users.
Feedback can be given through various means. Using a phone app provides the most flexibility with the screen, CPU (or other processor), memory, optional internet connection, etc. The methods as discussed for calibration per the embodiments of the present invention can be done in conjunction with the use of the app with use of the communication elements as described in reference to
As a part of continual improvement for the lens, data for the lenses can be collected and sent back to the manufacturer (anonymously) via the app to be used to improve the product. Collected data includes, but not limited to, accommodation cycles, errors, frequency that poor conditions occur, number of hours worn, user set threshold, etc.
Other methods to indicate operation include, but are not limited to, blinking lights, vibrating haptics drivers, and activating the lens. Various patterns of activation of these methods could be interpreted by the user to understand the status of the lens.
Referring now to
The communications channel 313 may include, but is not limited to, a set of radio transceivers, optical transceivers, or ultrasonic transceivers that provide the exchange of information between both lens and/or between the lenses and the external device used to send and receive information. The types of information include, but are not limited to, current sensor readings showing position, the results of system controller computation, synchronization of threshold and activation. In addition, the external device could upload settings, send sequencing signals for the various calibrations, and receive status and error information from the lenses.
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Referring to
It is important to note that the above described elements may be realized in hardware, in software implemented on a processor or in a combination of hardware and software. In addition, the communication channel may include various forms of wireless communications. The wireless communication channel may be configured for high-frequency electromagnetic signals, low-frequency electromagnetic signals, visible light signals, infrared light signals, and ultrasonic-modulated signals. The wireless channel may further be used to supply power to the internal embedded power source acting as a primary cell or rechargeable power means.
The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computer program product. The computer program product being used by a controller for causing the controller to carry out aspects of the present invention.
Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer-readable program instructions.
The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all means plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application or technical improvement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.
