Stereo laparoscope apparatus
US5613936A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 22, 1995 |
| Grant date | Mar 25, 1997 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 22, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA61B1/3132
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A stereo laparoscope for producing a stereoscopic optical image of an intracorporeal region comprises an elongate tubular casing having side walls in which an illuminating window and left and right observation windows are disposed. A single, elongate, image transmitting optical fiber bundle is disposed within the casing, as are light emitting fibers for illuminating the intracorporeal region through the illuminating window. Left and right images are collected from the observation windows and alternately passed along the casing to the fiber bundle by a relay means comprising objective lenses, mirrors, a polarizing beam splitter and an optical switch. The left and right images are carried one at a time by the fiber bundle to a video display means which displays them to a viewer. Optical valves provide that the left image is viewed by the viewer's left and the right image is view by the viewer's right eye, to thereby produce a stereoscopic optical image. The left and right images are displayed at a rate of alternation that is faster than the flicker-sensing limit of the human eye, resulting in flicker free viewing.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.