systems and methods to enable consumers to obtain vision and eye health examinations

专利摘要:
Summary Systems and methods to enable clients to get eye and vision health exams Systems and methods are provided for eye and vision health exams. A customer diagnostic center is set up to generate customer exam data belonging to a customer eye exam. The customer diagnostic center provides a user interface for communicating with a customer and ophthalmic equipment to administer tests for the customer. A diagnostic center server is configured to receive client exam data from the client diagnostic center over a network and allow client exam data to be accessed by a physician-ophthalmologist. A medical device associated with the eye care professional is configured to receive the client exam data from the diagnostic and visualization center server at least a portion of the client exam data to the eye care practitioner. . Customer assessment data is generated referring to the eye care physician's assessment of the customer examination data. An eye health report is provided to the client via the network.
公开号:BR112015010320A2
申请号:R112015010320
申请日:2013-04-26
公开日:2020-04-22
发明作者:Cohen Bob；S Seriani Joseph
申请人:20/20 Vision Center LLC；
IPC主号:

专利说明:

SYSTEMS AND METHODS TO ALLOW CONSUMERS TO OBTAIN EYE HEALTH VISION AND EXAMS
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [001] This application claims priority for U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 723,188, filed on November 6, 2012, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION [002] The present invention generally relates to the field of optometry and the performance of eye exams. More specifically, certain modalities are aimed at systems and methods to allow consumers and other users to obtain eye health and eye exams through a consumer diagnostic center that includes ophthalmic equipment and instruments for carrying out various tests and procedures. regarding eye health and the visual capacity of consumers. According to certain of these modalities, the consumer diagnostic center provides data regarding the consumer and the tests to a remote professional through a network for review and evaluation and receives an eye health report from the remote professional to be provided for the patient. consumer.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [003] In today's era of increased science of health monitoring and the importance of early detection and prevention of various medical conditions, disorders and diseases, individuals are often required to visit medical professionals for a range tests and check-ups. For example, it is generally recommended that
2/107 individuals make regular visits (for example, once a year, every two years, etc.) to professionals in connection with the monitoring, diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions in various areas, such as heart health, detection of various cancers, and monitoring for certain predisposed genetic disorders.
[004] An area in which there is a particular need for regular visits to a medical professional in connection with an individual's eye examination. Typically, examining a person's eyes involves performing one or more tests for monitoring and diagnosing eye health, such as detecting glaucoma and retinal disorders, inspecting the pupil and measuring the sensitivity of the cornea and / or tests to assess skill and visual acuity, such as the determination of refractive error and the detection of color blindness.
[005] There are several important benefits to obtaining eye health exams and / or eye exams on a regular and ongoing basis. For example, as with many other types of medical examinations, regular visits and check-ups by an individual allow professionals to monitor and track individual eye health and for the detection and diagnosis of certain disorders, diseases and other changes in patient's eyes and / or vision. Significantly, this allows for early detection, diagnosis and treatment of many conditions, which in turn often increases the likelihood that the treatment will be successful. In fact, many disorders and many diseases are generally treatable or even preventable when detected and diagnosed promptly and
3/107 appropriate. Also, it is well known that changes in vision can often occur somewhat suddenly, as in certain periods of a person's life, and the vision can deteriorate continuously over time. Therefore, another important benefit of regulating eye exams is that they help to ensure that optical prescriptions for individuals are up to date and as accurate as possible.
[006] Given these and numerous other benefits associated with regular eye exams, it is not surprising that many well-known optometric and ophthalmological associations and organizations typically recommend that individuals visit eye care professionals every year or two. Furthermore, the need to receive regular eye exams is particularly important for certain individuals, including those who are more likely to suffer from various disorders and illnesses based on their demographics or other characteristics, such as age, race, profession, etc. . As a result, it is often recommended that many of these individuals receive eye exams at least once a year or on an even more frequent basis.
[007] Additionally, it is well known and widely accepted in the field of eye health and vision that, in order to maximize these benefits, regular examinations received by individuals should in the form of comprehensive eye examinations. Typically, to be considered comprehensive, these tests must include certain approved tests and procedures and / or meet certain minimum standards for diagnostic tests. In
4/107 In particular, comprehensive eye examinations should include at most, if not all, the following tests and procedures (or tests and procedures of an equivalent nature): (i) objective and subjective retraction and / or other tests to check visual acuity; (ii) examination of the extraocular muscles; (iii) peripheral vision test (for example, by checking the visual field for confrontation);
(iv) examination of the external eye; (v) examining the pupils; (vi) color vision test; (vii) test for stereoscopic vision; (viii) central field of view assessment (for example, using an Amsler screen); (ix) coverage test for strabismus; (x) examination of slit lamp using biomicroscopy; (xi) examination of eyelids, conjunctiva, cornea, anterior chamber, iris and lens; (xii) measurement of eye pressure and / or intraocular pressure; (xiii) background image formation using a retinal camera and examination of the macula, vessels, optic nerve, peripheral retina and vitreous humor.
[008] Despite the known importance of regular eye health check-ups and eye exams, many individuals only visit eye care professionals and receive eye exams on a highly sporadic basis. Other individuals fail to visit an eye care professional at all, or only do so in response to suffering from a medical condition or recognizing a potential problem in their vision. In fact, it is estimated that the average American adult receives an eye exam once every five years or more. Likewise, it is estimated that a large percentage of individuals in America who require some form of vision correction have the wrong correction.
5/107 or no correction. Furthermore, even among individuals who undergo eye examinations on a more frequent basis, the examinations received by these individuals often fail to rise to the level of a comprehensive eye examination. For example, when visiting an eye care professional, many individuals simply receive vision screening and / or a minimal set of visual acuity tests.
[009] While there are a number of contributing factors, the primary reasons why many individuals fail to undergo regular eye exams are based on time, cost and convenience. Typically, in order to obtain an eye exam, an individual is required to spend time and effort to seek, select and make an appointment with an appropriate eye care professional. In turn, time is spent traveling to and from the professional's office, waiting for the professional, participating in discussions with the professional and / or the nurse or assistant and passing the exam. Similarly, from the professional's perspective, the number of patients who can be seen and examined is limited by several factors, such as the time required to examine each patient, update patient records and prepare equipment. As a result, individuals are often forced to visit eye care professionals at inconvenient times and / or travel to other less conveniently located professionals. Also, in order to maximize the number of patients that can be seen, professionals can limit the number of tests and procedures and / or the time
6/107 spent on these tests, thereby reducing the time required for each patient.
[010] Additionally, the costs associated with visiting a professional can deter and even prohibit many individuals from receiving eye exams on a regular basis. This may additionally be compounded by the fact that many individuals lack insurance coverage for these exams and are required to pay some or all of the costs out of their own pocket. Thus, making regular visits to an eye care professional can often be a time-consuming, inconvenient and expensive undertaking. Therefore, there is a need for new approaches to the provision of eye health examinations and eye examinations that minimize the time and cost required by individuals and, thus, encourage individuals to obtain regular examinations.
[011] There have been some attempts in the past to provide systems that simplify and automate the vision test and examination process to allow all consumers to screen their vision with little or no assistance. These prior art vision screening systems, however, exhibited several drawbacks and limitations, which resulted in their failure to be adopted by consumers in any significant way. One of these drawbacks is that many of these systems only provide a vision screening or a visual acuity test. Similarly, many of these systems are limited to a restricted or incomplete set of procedures and tests and do not allow individuals to obtain a comprehensive eye exam. Another drawback is that many tests
7/107 systems require an eye care professional and / or operator on site to provide part or all of the examination. Others of these systems do not allow any entry or return from an eye care professional. Yet another drawback is that none of these systems provides a real-time interface between the examiner and a remote professional. Yet another drawback is that many of these systems do not include any functionality for the automatic detection or diagnosis of potential disorders, defects or risk factors based on examination data from individuals and / or for the automatic generation of recommendations and / or referrals. .
[012] Therefore, there is a need for an eye test and assessment system for the provision of eye health tests and eye tests for individuals. There is also a need for a system that allows individuals to obtain eye health and eye exams through a user-friendly consumer diagnostic center, which includes a wide range of eye and vision test equipment. There is still a need for a system which allows individuals to receive a comprehensive eye exam. There is still a need for a system having an automated or semi-automated consumer diagnostic center that allows individuals to obtain eye health and eye examinations with little or no on-site assistance.
[013] There is also a need for a system that provides an interface between the consumer diagnostic center and a remote eye care professional, to allow the professional to assess eye health and
8/107 the view of individuals. There is still a need for a system that allows the remote professional to assess an individual's eye health and vision and provide the individual with eye health reports, prescriptions, diagnoses and / or recommendations from the remote professional. There is still a need for a system that allows a remote professional or off-site technician to control or monitor eye and vision test equipment and / or administer various eye and vision health tests to individuals. There is still a need for a system that can be accessed by individuals in a wide range of convenient locations. There is still a need for a system that encourages individuals to obtain eye health and eye examinations on a regular basis by reducing the time and cost required.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [014] In accordance with certain modalities, a system is provided that includes a consumer diagnostic center that is configured to generate consumer examination data for an examination of a consumer's eye. The consumer diagnostics center provides a user interface for receiving an entry and providing information to a consumer. The consumer diagnostic center also includes an ophthalmic equipment for administering tests to the consumer and an equipment controller configured to control the operation of the ophthalmic equipment. The diagnostic center server is configured to receive consumer exam data from the consumer diagnostic center over a network and allow consumer exam data
9/107 are accessed by an eye care professional. A professional device associated with the eye care professional is configured to receive at least a portion of the consumer examination data from the diagnostic center server and display the received consumer examination data to the eye care professional. Consumer assessment data is generated for the review of an eye care professional and for the assessment of consumer exam data. An eye health report is provided to the consumer through the network.
[015] In accordance with certain modalities, a method for eye and eye health examinations is provided. The method includes generating consumer exam data for a consumer eye exam at a consumer diagnostic center. The consumer diagnostics center includes a user interface for receiving an entry from and providing information to the consumer. The consumer diagnostic center also includes ophthalmic equipment for administering tests to the consumer and an equipment controller configured to control the operation of the ophthalmic equipment. Consumer exam data is received from the consumer diagnostic center over a computer network on a diagnostic center server. The diagnostic center server allows consumer exam data to be accessed by an eye care professional. Consumer exam data is received on a professional device associated with the
10/107 eye care from the diagnostic center server. At least a portion of the consumer examination data is displayed to the eye care professional. Consumer assessment data referring to the review of the eye care professional and the assessment of consumer exam data are generated. An eye health report based, at least in part, on consumer assessment data is provided to the consumer via the network.
[016] According to certain modalities, a server is configured to provide services associated with eye and eye health examinations. The server is configured to receive consumer scan data over a computer network for a consumer eye exam administered at a consumer diagnostic center. The consumer diagnostic center includes a user interface for receiving an entry from and providing information to the consumer. The consumer diagnostic center also includes an ophthalmic equipment for administering tests to the consumer and an equipment controller configured to control the operation of the ophthalmic equipment. The server is configured to provide access to consumer examination data by an eye care professional and for transmission of consumer examination data from the diagnostic center server to a professional device associated with the eye care professional. The server is still configured to receive consumer assessment data regarding the eye care professional's review and data assessment
11/107 consumer survey. An eye health report based, at least in part, on consumer assessment data is provided to the consumer via the network.
[017] These and other features and advantages will become evident from the detailed description below of illustrative modalities of the same, which is to be read in connection with the associated drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [018] The inventive principles are illustrated in the figures of the associated drawings, which are meant to be examples and not limiting, in which equal references are intended for reference to equal or corresponding parts, and in which:
figure 1 is a pictorial diagram of an eye test and evaluation system in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention;
figure 2 is a pictorial diagram of an eye test and evaluation system in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 3 is a block diagram illustrating a portion of the components of a consumer diagnostic center that can be used with the eye test and evaluation system in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 4 is a block diagram showing a portion of a consumer diagnostic center that has an eye examination system in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention;
figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating a portion of a consumer diagnostic center that has a
12/107 eye examination system according to certain embodiments of the present invention;
Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating an example method for administering an eye testing and evaluation service in accordance with certain embodiments of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [019] In the description that follows, reference is made to the associated drawings that form a part of here, and in which specific modalities in which the invention can be practiced are shown by way of illustration. It is to be understood that other modalities can be used and structural changes can be made, without departing from the scope of the present invention.
[020] It is well known that eye health examinations and eye examinations provide many important benefits, and therefore virtually all associations and highly regarded professionals across the field of eye and eye health strongly recommend that individuals receive examinations and screenings on a regular and consistent basis. Nevertheless, many individuals fail to undergo eye health examinations and eye examinations at all, or only do so sporadically in response to an immediate medical condition or problem. In part, many individuals find it challenging to obtain regular checkups because of the significant time, cost and inconvenience that may be required in relation to finding an eye care professional, making an appointment and visiting the professional's office for these individuals and others, systems and methods are provided here, which
13/107 allow individuals to obtain eye health and eye exams through consumer diagnostic centers in a wide range of convenient locations, thereby reducing the time and expense incurred by those individuals.
[021] Certain modalities of the present invention relate to an eye testing and evaluation system, including devices, certain hardware components in general and computer hardware and software for the provision of eye health examinations and / or eye examinations for consumers (ie, any individual desiring eye health and / or eye examinations). According to certain of these modalities, consumers can receive eye health exams and / or eye exams at a consumer diagnostic center that includes various ophthalmic and / or vision test equipment and instruments for administering a band tests and procedures, and the collection of various data regarding the eyes and eyes of consumers. In certain modalities, the consumer diagnostic center has an interface with a remote professional (eg, ophthalmologist, optometrist, or other eye doctor or eye care professional) through a network. According to certain of these modalities, various data, including data relating to a consumer and data associated with eye health and vision tests and procedures administered to the consumer are provided to the remote professional for analysis, diagnosis and / or confirmation. In certain modalities, an eye health report, an optical prescription and recommendations and / or referrals based on
14/107 consumer and test data are received from the remote professional and provided to the consumer. Certain modalities allow ophthalmic and / or vision test equipment at the consumer diagnostic center and / or the administration of various tests and procedures to be
controlled or monitored fur professional remote or per a technician out of place through a interface in equipment remote.[022] 0 system of test and evaluation eye, the
corresponding arrangements and systems, devices and methods described below address many of the obstacles and restrictions that currently exist with regard to administering eye health examinations and eye examinations to individuals, and encourages individuals to undergo such examinations and examinations in a regular and consistent basis for the provision of consumer diagnostic centers in various convenient locations that allow individuals to obtain eye health and eye examinations with little or no assistance, thereby minimizing the time, effort and cost involved.
Eye Test and Assessment System Architecture
[023] In certain modalities, the system in test and evaluation in eye can be provided through in any proper way of components of hardware in general and
computer devices, hardware and software, or a combination of any of the foregoing, that allows consumers to obtain eye health and / or eye tests. The example illustrations of the architecture of the eye test and evaluation system and associated devices, systems and components, according to certain modalities,
15/107 are shown in figures 1 to 2 and described below. As shown in figures 1 to 2, the system can include various components and subcomponents, such as appliances, equipment, servers, processors, networks and personal devices, which are part of the eye testing and evaluation system.
[024] It is to be understood that the components described can be logical components and that the terminology used here for the description of each component is for illustrative purposes and is not to be construed as limiting. Each component and subcomponent may include the necessary devices, computer devices and hardware, software and firmware to enable the collection, measurement, processing, storage, communication, presentation and / or receipt of data. A component or subcomponent can include one or more electronic components, mechanical components, instruments, computer processors, computer servers, data stores, storage media, memory, etc. The functionality of a component can be directed by one or more instructions that can be read on computer executables received through a storage medium that can be read on a computer. A processor can be included to perform one or more functions by instructions, programs or processes stored in the processor itself and / or stored in another source of memory. An EM can be any mechanism that is capable of storing data, such as computer programs, instructions and other necessary data. One or more interfaces can be included to allow for
16/107 presentation, manipulation, transmission and reception of data. Data communication can be enabled by one or more networks or physical connections. A network can include one or more wide area networks (WAN) (such as the Internet), local area networks (LAN), wireless local area networks (WLAN), a mobile wireless network, a combination of any of the foregoing and / or any other suitable networks, and may include any component (physical or logical) necessary for the use of a particular network functionality, such as routers, adapters, subnets, etc.
[025] Figure 1 is a pictorial diagram of an eye test and evaluation system according to certain modalities. As shown in figure 1, the system includes a consumer diagnostics center 10 that has several components, such as general hardware components, mechanical devices, electronic equipment, computer hardware and software, and other suitable components to allow consumers to receive eye health examinations and / or eye examinations. In certain modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 includes various ophthalmic equipment and instruments, such as refractors, lensometers, tonometers, biomicroscopes, etc. for the administration of a range of tests and procedures for consumers. In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostics center 10 includes one or more interfaces, such as a consumer interface for receiving entries, selections, responses and other data from consumers, and extracting a variety of information for consumers. O
17/107 consumer diagnostics center 10 may also include a network interface for communicating with various other systems and devices over one or more networks, such as network 50 shown in figure 1. In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostics center 10 may include an operator interface to allow an on-site technician or operator to monitor or control ophthalmic equipment and instruments (or a portion thereof) and / or administer tests and procedures for consumers.
[026] According to certain modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 may include computer hardware, software or a combination thereof, such as processors, memory, controllers, applications and other suitable computing devices and components that control the general operation of the consumer diagnostic center 10. For example, these components can facilitate the administration of eye health and eye examinations, process data received from consumers and operators, and data generated by ophthalmic equipment and instruments and / or the management of data communication to and from other systems and devices over a network. The devices, equipment, computer hardware and software and other components that can be included in and / or used by the consumer diagnostic center 10 are further illustrated and described below in connection with figures 3 to 5.
[027] In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can be provided in the form of an independent structure, such as a booth or other enclosed area
18/107 adequate. In certain of these modalities, several structures can be provided, each of which may include certain components of a consumer diagnostic center
10. In certain of these modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 may be of sufficient size to allow consumers to enter and / or sit there. According to certain other modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 (or a portion thereof) can be provided in an independent form, such as a kiosk, a terminal or the like, or can be incorporated into one or more existing structures, such as eyeglass or contact lens dispensing machines or other types of devices associated with vision, test testing (for example, physically or virtually), personalization, ordering and / or purchase of glasses and contact lenses. In accordance with yet other modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can be provided in any structure or form that is suitable for accommodating the various components described here and allowing consumers to receive eye health and eye examinations.
[028] The Consumer Diagnostics Center 10 can be provided in a wide range of locations and environments. For example, in certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can be provided at various shopping locations, a retail store, shopping centers, event centers, commercial buildings or other indoor environments. In certain modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 may be located in a retail store, an office or similar that is associated with the provision of
19/107 one or more eye health and / or vision products or services, such as an eye clinic, a prescription lens laboratory or store, or an optician, optometrist or ophthalmologist's office. As another example, the
center in diagnosis in consumer 10 can be provided in various locations and environments external, such as shopping malls edge in road, Comercial centers in
wholesale or urban shopping centers. In certain other embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can be provided in virtually any place or environment that is suitable to allow consumers to access the consumer diagnostic center 10 and receive eye health and eye examinations. In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can be provided as a fixed structure or device or it can be designed to be portable or mobile.
[029] As illustrated in figure 1, the eye test and assessment system may include a consumer diagnostic center server (CDC server) 20, which may be in the form of computer hardware, software or a combination thereof, including any number of physical or virtual computer servers, or any other suitable computer device or devices. In certain embodiments, the CDC server 20 and / or the database server 10 may be hosted and operated by the owner or operator of the consumer diagnostic center 10. In certain other embodiments, the CDC server 20 and / or the Database server 10 can be hosted and operated by one or more third party service providers. According to certain of these
20/107 modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 and ο CDC server 20 can communicate with each other over network 50, which can be any suitable type of wired and / or wireless network, such as a network of Internet.
[030] In certain embodiments, the CDC 20 server can provide various services and functionality required by and / or manage or control certain functionality associated with the consumer diagnostic center 10. For example, in certain embodiments, the CDC 20 server may be responsible for storing, maintaining, updating, processing and / or providing access to various data received from or used by the consumer diagnostic center 10, such as consumer data, test results data associated with tests and procedures administered through the consumer diagnostic center 10 and / or professional assessment data referring to a review of remote professionals, diagnostics and assessment of exam results data. The CDC 20 server can also store, maintain and / or provide access to data received from or associated with other sources, such as medical history data and previous consumer examination data, test data for available tests and procedures through the consumer diagnostics center 10 and / or product data, promotional data and advertising data associated with products and services related to eye health and vision provided by various third parties. In certain of these modalities, the CDC 20 server can also use one or more database servers, such as
21/107 the database server 22 shown in figure 1, to facilitate the storage, organization and recovery of some or all of the data maintained by the CDC server 20 in one or more databases maintained by the bank server data server 22. The CDC server 20 can access the database server 22 through any suitable connection, such as a physical connection, a local network and / or network 50.
[031] As another example, the CDC 20 server may be responsible for managing, controlling or updating certain functionality associated with the consumer diagnostics center 10. In certain modalities, the CDC 20 server may store various software, programs, instructions, test data and other information that is used by the consumer diagnostic center 10 in connection with allowing consumers to access and obtain eye health and eye examinations, controlling ophthalmic equipment and instruments, and / or the provision and administering tests and procedures for consumers. As yet another example, the CDC server 20 may be responsible for managing and facilitating the establishment of connections and / or data communication between the consumer diagnostic center 10 and various other systems and devices over one or more networks, such as devices associated with an off-site technician or remote eye care professional; devices associated with consumers and / or systems associated with third-party providers of vision and eye health products and services.
[032] Although the CDC 20 server and the bank server
22/107 of data 22 are shown in figure 1 for illustrative purposes, it should be understood that, in certain modalities, the functionality provided by the CDC server 20 and / or by the database server 22 can be provided by any number of servers , or other computing hardware, software and / or devices. Alternatively, or additionally, some or all of the functionality provided by the CDC server 20 and / or database server 22 can be integrated with the consumer diagnostic center 10. In certain other embodiments, the CDC server 20 and / or the database server 22 can be connected directly to the consumer diagnostic center 10.
[033] In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 and / or the CDC server 20 may interface with a remote eye care professional through one or more devices associated with the professional, such as the remote professional device 30 shown in figure 1. The remote professional device 30 can be a computing device, such as a personal computer, a workstation, a laptop, a tablet, a smartphone or PDA, or any other suitable device, that allows a remote professional receives, accesses, sees and / or sends data over one or more networks (for example, over network 50). In certain modalities, the remote eye care professional may be a licensed optometrist or ophthalmologist. In certain other modalities, the remote eye care professional can be any eye care professional or other qualified person,
23/107 licensed or otherwise able to administer or monitor one or more tests and procedures for eye health and visual acuity and / or review, analysis and provision of diagnostics, reports, prescriptions or recommendations based on the data and results associated with administration these tests and procedures.
[034] According to certain modalities, various data associated with eye health examinations and eye examinations administered to consumers through the consumer diagnostic center 10 can be sent to (or made accessible to) the remote professional on the device. remote professional 30. For example, in response to a consumer accessing the consumer diagnostic center 10 and receiving certain eye and eye health tests, consumer exam data can be sent to the remote professional device 30 for review by the professional remote. In certain embodiments, consumer exam data may include consumer data (for example, name, age, gender, race, consumer's medical history, previous test results, etc.) and data associated with one or more of the tests administered to the consumer (for example, responses, inputs and selections from the consumer, instrument measurements and readings, test results, etc.). In certain of these modalities, consumer examination data may also include a number of other data that enable the remote professional to assess (or assist the remote professional a) the consumer's eye health and visual ability, to detect and diagnose certain disorders, defects and conditions and / or confirm that one or more of the tests and
24/107 procedures are administered correctly.
[035] In certain embodiments, consumer assessment data may be received from the remote professional via the remote professional device 30 which is based on the review by the remote professional and the assessment of consumer exam data. Consumer assessment data received from the remote professional may include various reports, diagnoses, recommendations and other information indicating the results of eye health and vision tests and procedures administered to the consumer. For example, in certain of these modalities, consumer assessment data may include an eye health report (or may be used to generate an eye health report) which may include an overview of the consumer's eye health, visual acuity , results of one or more tests and procedures, diagnoses of one or more eye or vision disorders or conditions, optical prescriptions, pharmaceutical prescriptions, recommendations, treatment instructions and / or referrals to see other eye care professionals. In certain embodiments, the eye health report and / or consumer assessment data (or a portion thereof) can be provided to the consumer, such as by presenting the eye health report to the consumer through the diagnostic center 10 and / or by allowing the consumer to access the eye health report from one or more computing devices associated with the consumer.
[036] According to certain modalities, the communication of some or all of the data sent to and received from the remote professional (for example, exam data
25/107 consumer and consumer assessment data) can be managed and facilitated by the CDC 20 server. For example, in response to a consumer receiving an eye health exam and / or an eye exam at the consumer diagnostic center 10, the CDC server 20 can store various data (for example, consumer data, test data, etc.) received from the consumer diagnostic center 10 and manage the delivery of the corresponding consumer exam data to the professional remote. In certain of these modalities, the CDC server 20 can send the consumer examination data to the remote professional device 30 via any suitable delivery mechanism, such as email, text message, file transfer, etc.
Alternatively or additionally, the remote professional may be able to access, view and / or download (via download) the consumer exam data from the CDC server 20, such as by using the remote professional device 30, to access consumer exam data through a web-based service or a similar network-based application hosted by the CDC server 20 and / or a client application installed on the remote professional device 30 that is adapted to connect to the server CDC 20.
[037] In turn, the receipt of various data from the remote professional can be managed by the CDC 20 server in a similar way. For example, after receiving and reviewing consumer review data, the remote professional can send consumer review data to the CDC 20 server.
26/107 certain modalities, such as when consumer exam data can be accessed and viewed through a web-based service or a client application, the remote professional may also be able to generate and / or provide assessment data through a web-based service or a customer application. In certain of these modalities, the web-based service or client application can assist the remote professional with the process of creating consumer assessment data, such as by providing a graphical user interface or similar that allows the remote professional to do selections, enter, upload (upload) and edit various data and generate various reports. In certain other modalities, the CDC 20 server can receive the consumer assessment data from the remote professional through any suitable delivery mechanism, such as by email.
[038] In a deal with certain others modalities, O server in CDC 20 may facilitate and / or establish an connection between the center of diagnosis of consumer 10 it's the
remote professional device 30 in order to allow the direct communication of certain data between the consumer diagnostic center 10 and the remote professional device 30. In certain of these modalities, a real-time connection can be established between the diagnostic center consumer 10 and the remote professional device 30, which allows the remote professional to view and interact with a consumer, access and view consumer exam data, and / or provide consumer assessment data to the consumer in real time,
27/107 such as during (or shortly after) the administration of one or more eye health and vision tests. The remote professional may also be able to control ophthalmic equipment and instruments and / or administer one or more eye health and vision tests in real time. As an alternative (or in addition), the CDC server 20 can establish a real-time connection between the consumer diagnostic center 10 and a device associated with an off-site technician (for example, an equipment operator or assistant remote professional, etc.) for monitoring and / or controlling the equipment and administering the tests. The process of establishing connections to and communicating various data to and from various devices associated with remote professionals and technicians outside the site is described in more detail below.
[039] In certain modalities, the CDC 20 server can also manage the communication of certain data to various other systems and devices. For example, as shown in figure 1, in certain modalities, after receiving an eye health exam and / or an eye exam through the consumer diagnostic center 10, consumers may be able to access some or all of the data associated with your exam or an exam (for example, an eye health report) from various devices, such as a consumer device 40, over network 50. Consumer device 40 can be any suitable type of computing device that is associated with the consumer, such as a personal computer, a laptop, a tablet, PDA, smartphone, etc. In
28/107 certain of these modalities, the data can be delivered and / or made accessible to consumers through a web-based service or network provided by the CDC server 20 or a client application installed on the consumer device 40, in a way similar to that described above in relation to communication with the remote professional. In certain modalities, consumers may also be able to view, enter and / or update their information, such as their consumer data. In addition, consumers who have not yet received an eye health exam or an eye exam through the consumer diagnostic center 10 may be able to enter certain background information and / or create an account beforehand, such as to avoid having to provide this information when visiting the consumer diagnostic center 10.
[040] As another example, the CDC 20 server may forward certain data associated with consumers and their eye health exams and / or eye exams to a third party provider of eye health and vision products and services, such as to an optical lab via optical lab server 90 (as shown in figure 1) or to an eye care professional (not shown) via network 50. In certain of these modalities, data can only be sent to a third party provider at response to the receipt of a request from the consumer. In certain other embodiments, the CDC 20 server can be configured to automatically deliver certain data to one or more third party providers, such as in response to
29/107 receiving consumer assessment data from a remote professional that includes a recommendation and / or referral for the consumer to visit an eye care professional in person.
[041] Although the foregoing describes several examples in which the CDC server 20 manages, facilitates and / or controls the communication of certain data to one or more devices and systems (for example, the remote professional device 30 and the consumer device 40), these examples are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. It should be understood that these (and several other) communications could be managed, facilitated and / or controlled by one or more other devices or components included with the eye test and assessment system, and / or various third party or external systems, devices and components. For example, in certain modalities, such as when the consumer diagnostics center 10 incorporates some or all of the functionality associated with the CDC server 20 and / or the database server 22, the consumer diagnostics center 10 can send the consumer scan data directly to the remote professional device 30 and / or make the data accessible to the remote professional device 30 through a web-based or networked service or through a client software application. Likewise, in certain modalities, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can establish a real-time connection with the remote professional device 30 and / or a device associated with an off-site technician, and can manage data communication for and from several others
30/107 systems and devices, such as consumer device 40 and / or optical lab server 90.
[042] Figure 2 is a pictorial diagram of an eye test and evaluation system according to certain other modalities. In certain embodiments, the eye test and assessment system may include several consumer diagnostic centers. For example, as shown in figure 2, the eye test and assessment system can include consumer diagnostic centers 10A through 10E. In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E may be similar to the consumer diagnostic centers illustrated and described in connection with Figures 1 and 3 to 5 (for example, the consumer diagnostic center 10) . In certain other embodiments, some or all of the consumer diagnostic centers 10A through 10E may include a limited set of components and / or provide a limited set of features and functionality. For example, consumer diagnostic centers 10A and 10C can be configured to provide consumers with eye exams, consumer diagnostic centers 10B and 10D can be configured to provide consumers with eye health exams and the consumer diagnostic center 10E can be configured to provide consumers with eye exams and eye health exams. In still other embodiments, one or more of the consumer diagnostic centers may include additional components and / or provide additional features and functionality, such as functionality related to ordering and purchasing eye and vision health products and services.
31/107 [043] In certain modalities, the consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E can all be owned, operated and / or maintained by the same party, such as a certain part associated with the manufacture and / or execution of services of the centers consumer diagnostics or a company associated with the sale of various eye and vision health products and services. For example, consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E can each be provided at a retail store or other physical location that is associated with an optician or prescription lens company. In certain other embodiments, consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E may be owned, operated and / or maintained by a number of different third parties. According to certain preferred modalities, consumer diagnostic centers can be provided in a wide range of locations and environments (for example, retail stores, department stores, shopping centers, doctors' offices, etc.), thereby making it as convenient as possible for consumers to locate and visit a consumer diagnostic center and obtain eye health and eye examinations.
[044] In certain embodiments, consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E may interface with several of CDC servers over one or more networks (such as network 50 shown in figure 1). For example, as shown in figure 2, consumer diagnostic centers 10A and 10B can interface with the CDC server 20A, consumer diagnostic centers 10C to 10D can interface with the CDC server 20B, and the 10E consumer diagnostics center can interface with the
32/107 CDC 20C server. In certain of these modalities, CDC servers 20A to 20C can manage or control certain operations of consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E, provide various features and resources used by consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E, and / or enable or facilitate certain communications between consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E and various other systems and devices, in a manner similar to that of the CDC 20 server described above in connection with figure 1. In certain embodiments, the CDC 20A to 20C servers may be provided in the form of separate physical computer servers, or can be provided in the form of virtual servers running on one or more physical computer servers. In certain other embodiments, the functionality associated with CDC servers 20A to 20C can be incorporated with a single CDC server (for example, the CDC 20 server shown in figure 1), which has an interface with the diagnostic centers of consumer 10A to 10E.
[045] In certain embodiments, as illustrated in figure 2, each CDC server can interface with a subset of the consumer diagnostic centers that are provided through the eye testing and evaluation system. For example, each CDC server can be associated with a particular predefined subset of consumer diagnostic centers. As another example, a CDC server can be associated with consumer diagnostic centers that are located in a specific geographic region (for example, a city, state, etc.) and / or consumer diagnostic centers
33/107 that are owned or operated by a particular third party (for example, a prescription lens retailer). In certain other modalities, a separate CDC server can be included for each consumer diagnostic center that is provided through the eye testing and evaluation system (ie, a one-to-one relationship). Additionally, although figure 2 shows each consumer diagnostics center having an interface with a single CDC server, in certain embodiments, consumer diagnostics centers 10A through 10E may be able to interface with multiple CDC servers.
[046] According to certain modalities, CDC servers 20A to 20C may interface with one or more database servers, such as database servers 22A to 22C, respectively, for storage, retrieval and access to various data that is generated by, related to and / or used by consumer diagnostic centers, such as consumer data, test administration data, consumer exam data and consumer assessment data, in a manner similar to that described in relation to figure 1. In certain of these modalities, each CDC server can use a separate database server (or servers) for storing data that is associated with the consumer diagnostic centers in particular that managed or controlled by the CDC server. In certain other embodiments, a central database server (or a group of database servers) can be provided, which is accessed and
34/107 used by some or all of the CDC servers. A benefit of using a central database is that it allows data associated with a particular consumer diagnostic center to be accessed quickly and efficiently at several other consumer diagnostic centers, such as when a consumer visits multiple centers consumer diagnostics at different times.
[047] In certain modalities, such as when consumer examination data and / or other information is provided to a remote professional for review and analysis of eye health or consumer visual ability, consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E and / or CDC servers 20A to 20C can communicate with several remote professionals. For example, consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E and / or CDC servers 20A to 20C can communicate with remote professionals via remote professional devices 30A to 30D, as shown in Figure 2. In certain of these modalities, remote professional devices can include a wide range of computing devices, such as a 30A remote professional workstation, a 30B remote professional smartphone, a 30C remote professional laptop, and a 30D remote professional tablet. Remote professional devices 30A to 30D can include devices that are associated with a particular remote professional (for example, a personal smartphone, a PC, a tablet), devices that are associated with several remote professionals (for example, a station or a company laptop) and / or a combination of the foregoing.
[048] In certain of the modalities the centers of
35/107 consumer diagnostics 10A to 10E and / or CDC servers 20A to 20C can be communicated with remote professional devices 30A to 30D over one or more networks using appropriate communication mechanisms and / or protocols, such as those described above in relation to figure 1. For example, consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E and / or CDC servers 20A to 20C can send data and / or receive data from remote professional devices 30A to 30D via one or more standardized transfer mechanisms (for example, by email). Alternatively or additionally, consumer diagnostics centers 10A to 10E and / or CDC servers 20A to 20C can provide data to and receive data from remote professionals through a client-server structure, such as a service web-based hosted by CDC servers 20A to 20C and accessed by remote professional devices 30A to 30D (for example, via a web browser) or a client application installed on remote professional devices 30 that connects to an application server running on CDC 20 servers.
[049] As shown in Figure 2, some or all of the communications and connections between remote professional devices 30A to 30D and consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E and / or CDC servers 20A to 20C can be facilitated by one or more intermediary servers, such as the remote professional management server (RPM) 24. In certain embodiments, the RPM server 24 can act simply as a central gateway or a proxy server that provides multiple interfaces through which
36/107 data can be communicated to and received from the remote professional devices. In certain other modalities, the RPM server 2 4 can keep track of remote professionals and / or remote professional devices that are associated with the eye test and assessment system and / or manage the distribution of data to remote professionals.
[050] In certain modalities, the RPM server 24 can use one or more database servers, such as the professional database server 26 shown in figure 2, for the storage and access to various data related to the remote professionals and remote professional devices. Among other things, professional data may include certain background information for each remote professional (for example, name, age, qualifications, location, etc.), data indicating one or more remote professional devices associated with each remote professional and / or data relating to one or more communication mechanisms through which data can be delivered to and / or made accessible to remote professionals. In turn, the RPM 24 server can access and use the professional data (or a portion of it) in several ways.
[051] For example, the RPM server 24 can use professional data in connection with forwarding data from CDC servers and / or consumer diagnostic centers to remote professionals, such as to determine how the data must be delivered (for example, by email, through a client application, etc.) and / or when data must be delivered
37/107 (for example, determining one or more remote professional devices). Similarly, professional data can be used to confirm whether the data should be delivered to a particular remote professional (for example, whether the remote professional is currently providing services through the system or whether the remote professional has certain qualifications required or specialization). As another example, the RPM server 24 can provide some or all of the professional data to CDC servers and / or consumer diagnostic centers, such as to allow CDC servers and / or consumer diagnostics determine remote professionals to communicate with them. In certain of these modalities, professional data can keep track of consumers for whom each remote professional has reviewed examination data and / or provided eye health reports, optical prescriptions, etc.
allowing yourself what the server in RPM 24 (or the servers from CDC or a center in diagnosis in consumer) determine if the data for one current consumer
can be sent to a remote professional who may already be familiar with the consumer.
[052] In certain modalities, professional data can store data that refer to the availability and / or status of each remote professional. These data may include, for example, information related to a remote professional's schedule, the days and / or hours when a remote professional is available for reviewing consumer exam data through the system, if the remote professional is available. vacation, etc. The data from
38/107 availability can be used in various ways to manage data communication for remote professionals, such as when determining whether a particular remote professional is able to review consumer exam data and / or providing a list of professionals remote devices currently available for CDC servers and / or consumer diagnostic centers. In certain of these modalities, such as when a real-time connection is established between consumer diagnostic centers and remote professionals, availability data may include an indication as to whether each remote professional is online and / or available for connection to a consumer diagnostic center (for example, you are not yet connected to a consumer diagnostic center, you have a sufficient network connection, you are using a supported remote professional device, etc.).
[053] Likewise, professional data can include data that is associated with monitoring and tracking the current workload of remote professionals through the system (for example, the number of consumers for whom each remote professional is in the process review and analysis of examination data). In turn, this data can be used by the RPM server 24 for the determination and selection of remote professionals who are available to review exam data associated with additional consumers. Alternatively or additionally, this tracking data can be used to determine or prioritize remote professionals who should be assigned to exam data.
39/107 consumer, as they are received, such as maintaining a list of remote professionals, which is ordered based on how long it has been since consumer survey data was provided for each remote professional. Therefore, by monitoring and tracking the workload of remote professionals, the RPM 24 server is able to distribute consumer exam data to the group of remote professionals in a balanced way, thereby minimizing the amount of time that each consumer has to wait, before receiving consumer assessment data (eg, eye health report, diagnostics, optical prescriptions, etc.) from a remote professional.
[054] According to certain modalities, some or all professional data can be obtained, tracked and / or updated on a regular, periodic basis, using various mechanisms. For example, in certain modalities, the RPM server 24 (and / or CDC servers or consumer diagnostic centers) can regularly consult with remote professionals (for example, by sending an email to remote professionals every week), in order to request remote professionals to provide and / or update certain information, such as their future schedules or periods of unavailability. In certain other modalities, such as when remote professionals review and / or respond to consumer survey data through a web-based service or a client application, remote professionals can be alerted to provide and update this information, when they access the service or application (for example, when
40/107 they authenticate to a website or open an application on their device, etc.). Similarly, in the event that real-time connections are established between CDC servers and consumer diagnostic centers, the RPM server 24 (and / or CDC servers or consumer diagnostic centers) may update a certain real-time information, such as by keeping track of the service area, each of the remote professionals is authenticated in the system and / or currently connected to a consumer diagnostic center. In addition or alternatively, some or all of the professional data can be obtained, tracked and / or updated based on information received or accessed from third party sources, such as by accessing a remote professional work schedule (for example , from a doctor's office or from a hospital associated with the remote professional) or by accessing a calendar or calendar application on the remote professional device. In certain other modalities, the RPM server 24 can use other means suitable for obtaining and updating professional data.
[055] Although a particular number of remote professional devices, CDC servers and consumer diagnostic centers are shown in Figure 2 for illustrative purposes, it should be understood that the eye testing and evaluation system can include any number of these servers and devices. Similarly, although the RPM server 24 and the professional database server 26 are shown in figure 2, in certain
41/107 modalities, the functionality associated with the RPM server 24 and / or the professional database server 26 can be any number of servers. In certain other embodiments, some or all of the functionality associated with the RPM server 24 and / or the professional database server 26 can be integrated with one or more CDC servers 20A to 20C and / or consumer diagnostic centers 10A to 10E.
Consumer Diagnostics Center [056] Figure 3 is a block diagram illustrating a portion of the components of a consumer diagnostics center that can be used with the eye test and assessment system in accordance with certain modalities. As mentioned above, the consumer diagnostic centers provided with the eye test and evaluation system can be implemented through various types of structures and physical arrangements. Likewise, consumer diagnostic centers can include a wide range of components, such as general hardware components, mechanical devices, electronic equipment, computer hardware and software, and any other suitable components to allow consumers to receive screening tests. eye health and / or eye exams through consumer diagnostic centers. It is to be understood that the particular components described below and / or illustrated in figures 3 to 5 are intended to be of the nature of an example, not exhaustive, and several other components may be included with the consumer diagnostic centers that are provided in relationship with the eye test and evaluation system, arrangements
42/107 correspondents and systems and methods described here.
[057] As shown in figure 3, in certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 generally includes a processor 110, a memory 120, an equipment controller 130, an eye examination system 140, a health examination system eyepiece 150, a consumer interface 160, an operator interface at site 170 and a network interface 180. Processor 110 may be responsible for managing the overall operation of consumer diagnostic center 10 and / or for controlling some or of all the components included here. In certain embodiments, processor 110 may be a single processing unit, such as a CPU or microcontroller, or it may be a computing device, such as a personal computer or workstation. In certain other embodiments, processor 110 may be in the form of multiple processing units, computing devices or any combination thereof. Memory 120 can be used for the storage and retrieval of a wide range of data, such as software, programs and / or instructions executed by processor 110 (or by other components) and / or data generated, received and used by several others consumer diagnostic center components 10. Memory 120 can include any type of data and / or media storage device, such as magnetic media, optical media, a random access memory, a read-only memory, data cache , etc., or any combination of one or more data and media storage devices. In certain embodiments, memory 120 (or a portion of it) can be integrated with
43/107 one or more other components of the consumer diagnostic center 10, such as processor 110.
[058] The eye examination system 140 may include various ophthalmic devices, equipment and instruments (for example, refractors, phoropters, lensometers, etc.) and / or associated systems, devices, components and / or computer hardware, software and data that allow consumers to receive eye exams at the consumer diagnostic center 10. In certain of these modalities, the 140 eye exam system can be used in connection with administering various tests and procedures for consumers and measuring, capturing and / or generating various data associated with determining consumers 'visual acuity and / or evaluating certain other aspects of consumers' eyesight. Similarly, the eye health examination system 150 may include various ophthalmic equipment (for example, tonometers, digital imaging, biomicroscopes, etc.) and / or other associated components that allow consumers to receive eye health examinations at consumer diagnostic center 10. In certain of these modalities, the eye health examination system 150 can be used in connection with administering various tests and procedures for consumers, and measuring, capturing and / or generating various data associated with the assessment of eye health for consumers.
[059] Although the eye examination system 140 and the eye health examination system 150 are shown in Figure 3, it should be understood that, in certain modalities, this may be logical, rather than a physical distribution
44/107 than a physical distinction. In other words, in certain of these modalities, some or all of the ophthalmic equipment and associated components can be used in connection with both eye examinations and eye health examinations. Examples of ophthalmic devices, equipment and associated instruments and components can be included in the eye examination system 140 and the eye health examination system 150, along with various tests and procedures that can be administered to consumers using this equipment, are further illustrated and described below in connection with figures 4 and 5.
[060] Equipment controller 130 may be responsible for controlling the operation of the eye examination system 140 and / or the eye health examination system 150. In certain embodiments, this may include control of some or all of the equipment ophthalmology and associated components in various ways, such as turning the equipment on and off, starting and adjusting the equipment, moving and positioning the equipment, and / or instructing the equipment to perform various operations and procedures. In certain embodiments, the equipment controller 130 may include a single processing unit, a microcontroller or a computing device that controls some or all of the ophthalmic equipment and associated components of the vision examination system 140 and / or examination system eye health 150. In certain other embodiments, equipment controller 130 may include multiple processing units, microcontrollers and / or
45/107 computation, each of which is responsible for controlling one or more ophthalmic devices, instruments, equipment and / or associated components. In still other embodiments, some or all of the functionality associated with equipment controller 130 can be integrated with several other components, such as processor 110 or operator interface at site 170. For example, in certain of these modalities, the equipment controller 130 and / or processor 110 may be in the form of (or include) a personal computer, workstation or similar computing device, which is connected (physically and / or wirelessly) to some or all ophthalmic equipment and associated components included in the eye examination system 140 and / or the eye health examination system 150.
[061] According to certain modalities, the equipment controller 130 may include and execute various software, programs and / or instructions associated with controlling the operation of the ophthalmic equipment and associated components. For example, equipment controller 130 may run one or more programs that include instructions for adjusting the equipment and / or using the equipment to administer various tests and procedures in response to a consumer requesting an eye exam and / or an eye health check through the consumer diagnostic center 10. In certain of these modalities, equipment controller 130 can retrieve software, programs and / or instructions from memory (such as memory 120), execute programs on an as-needed basis or when instructed to do so by
46/107 processor 110. In certain embodiments, such as when ophthalmic equipment and / or test administration can be monitored and controlled by several individuals (for example, a remote professional, an off-site technician and / or an operator on the equipment controller 130 can also (or instead) receive instructions, or execute instructions based on an input received, from various other consumer diagnostic center components 10. In certain of these modalities, for example , equipment controller 130 can receive instructions or input from a remote professional and / or an off-site technician (for example, a remote professional assistant, a remote equipment operator) via network interface 180, from on-site operator or technician through an on-site operator interface 170.
[062] As shown in Figure 3, in certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 may include an operator interface at the site 170, which may allow an operator, technician, examination assistant or any other suitable individual , which is in the same location as the consumer diagnostics center controls certain aspects of the consumer diagnostics center. In certain embodiments, for example, the on-site operator interface 170 may allow the on-site technician to control and / or monitor some or all of the ophthalmic equipment and associated components included with the 140 eye examination system and the examination system eye care 150 and / or the tests and procedures administered to consumers using the equipment. In certain
47/107 of these modalities, the on-site technician controls, modifies and personalizes the equipment, tests and / or information extracted for consumers during tests for a particular consumer, as based on one or more responses or selections provided by the consumer or in response to various data, measurements and results obtained through the tests. As another example, the on-site operator interface 170 can allow the on-site technician to control and monitor other consumer diagnostic center operations 10, such as to assist consumers with account creation, access and report updates prior testing and consumer data, forwarding information to third parties (for example, sending test reports or optical prescriptions to an outside professional or lens lab) and / or placing an order and purchasing products and
services related to eye health and vision from one retailer online. [063] In certain modalities, the interface of operator at the location 170 can include several devices input /
output and components that allow an on-site technician to monitor and control the operations of the consumer diagnostic center 10. In certain of these modalities, for example, the operator interface at site 170 may include one or more displays, touch screens, speakers, fault recognition systems, keyboards, touchpads, mice, joysticks, microphones, and / or any other suitable input / output devices and components for display or otherwise extracting information for the technician on site (for example , equipment status, exam data and
48/107 results, consumer inputs and responses, etc.) and / or receipt of selections and inputs from the technician on site (for example, commands, instructions, data to be extracted for the consumer, etc.). In certain embodiments, such as when equipment controller 130 and / or processor 110 are in the form of (or include) a personal computer or workstation, the operator interface at site 170 may comprise several standardized input / output components output and peripheral devices that are integrated with (or connected to) a personal computer (eg monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc.). The on-site operator interface 170 may also include computer software, applications and / or programs that assist the on-site technician with the process of monitoring and controlling the operations of the consumer diagnostic center. For example, the on-site operator interface 170 can provide one or more applications that allow on-site technicians to make multiple selections, enter data and commands and / or view information regarding certain components of the consumer diagnostic center through a graphical user interface.
[064] The consumer interface 160 can be used to display information and data for and receive various inputs, selections and responses from consumers. Like the operator interface at site 170, consumer interface 160 can include any suitable input / output devices and components (for example, touch and / or other types of display screens, microphones, speakers, keyboards, mice, etc.) that allow consumers to order, and that
49/107 help the consumer with this, and receive eye exams and / or an eye health exam and having access to various other resources and functionality provided through the consumer diagnostic center 10.
[065] For example, in relation to a consumer accessing the consumer diagnostic center 10, the consumer interface 160 may display one or more questions, forms, options, alerts or the like that allow the user to access, view, enter, modify and / or update a variety of information associated with the consumer (for example, user authentication information, account data, consumer data, previous exam reports, results and data, etc.). Similarly, in certain embodiments, the consumer interface 160 may present consumers with various options regarding the services that can be obtained through a consumer diagnostic center. In certain of these modalities, consumers may be able to select an option to receive an eye exam, an eye health exam or both. In certain other modalities, consumers may be able to choose from one or more predefined eye examination and / or eye health services (for example, services associated with different levels, costs, time requirements) and / or to create a personalized eye exam and / or eye health exam by selecting one or more specific tests and procedures to be included in the desired service.
[0 66] As another example, in connection with the administration of various eye health tests and views
50/107 a consumer, the consumer interface 160 can display a variety of information to the consumer, such as data used to perform the tests (for example, eye frames, test images and graphs), data associated with the consumer's request for the provision of certain answers, selections and entries (for example, test questions, forms, etc.) and / or data regarding test instructions or directions (for example, instructing the consumer to stand, sit or assume a particular position, blink, look in a certain direction, etc.). In turn, consumer interface 160 can receive various data from the consumer during testing, such as answers to test questions.
[067] As yet another example, after a consumer has received an eye health exam and / or an eye exam through a consumer diagnostic center 10 (or another consumer diagnostic center), the consumer 160 can display varied information regarding tests, such as results, diagnostics, recommendations and other data that are automatically generated by the consumer diagnostic center 10 (and / or a CDC server associated with it), or data received from from a remote professional (eg, eye health reports, optical and other prescriptions, diagnoses, recommendations, referrals). In addition, as discussed in greater detail below, a wide variety of data and information can also be displayed to and received from consumers via the consumer interface 160 in connection with numerous other features and functionality, such as paying for services
51/107 received through consumer diagnostic centers, request data to be forwarded to one or more third parties, view, place an order and purchase eye and vision health products and services, and / or communicate with remote professionals and other third parties parties.
[068] In certain embodiments, the consumer interface 160 may include various software, applications and programs for managing the output of information for consumers and / or assisting consumers with the process of entering and providing data, responses, etc. In certain of these modalities, these orders can provide consumers with a user-friendly graphical user interface, which allows consumers to access and view information, enter text and other data, and make selections, such as via a touch screen , a keyboard, a mouse, or similar.
[069] According to certain modalities, consumer interface 160 can include an audio response system, which can understand and use various systems, devices and software, such as speakers, microphones, speech recognition software , text-to-speech software, etc. In certain of these modalities, the audio response system can be used to extract various information and data to and / or receive various inputs, selections and data from consumers in the form of voice and / or other suitable audio data. In some of these modalities, the audio response system can be used in addition to (or instead of) extracting and receiving some or all of the data through
52/107 other mechanisms, such as displays, keyboards, etc. For example, the audio response system can be used in connection with administering one or more eye health and / or vision tests, such as to ask questions to the consumer, receive responses and selections from the consumer, and / or provide instructions and directions for the consumer. In certain of these modalities, questions or other audio outputs can be based on a stored set of predefined questions and / or can be selected or determined based on consumer responses to previous questions or the measurements or results of previous tests or procedures administered to the consumer.
[070] In certain embodiments, the consumer diagnostic center 10 can include a network interface 180, as shown in figure 3. The network interface 180 can include any known network devices, computer hardware and software, and / or associated systems and components, which allow the consumer diagnostic center 10 to send and receive data over one or more networks. In certain embodiments, network interface 180 may provide interfaces that allow the consumer diagnostic center 10 to communicate with (and / or connect to) various other systems and devices (for example, CDC servers, devices remote professional, third party retail systems, etc.) over a wide range of networks (for example, network 50). In certain of these modalities, network interface 180 may also (or alternatively) be responsible for facilitating, controlling and / or managing
53/107 some or all of the communications. For example, network interface 180 can facilitate and / or manage the communication of various data to and from CDC servers (for example, consumer data, test and program data, software and firmware updates, etc.). ) and remote professional devices (for example, consumer data, consumer survey data, consumer assessment data, etc.).
[071] According to certain modalities, the network interface 180 may include various systems, software and other components that allow the encryption and encryption of some or all of the communications sent from the consumer diagnostic center to be encrypted or encrypted before a transmission (as well as the decryption and decryption of communications received by the consumer diagnostic center). For example, Consumer Diagnostics Center 10 can encrypt and / or encrypt all transmissions that include medical data for consumers (for example, consumer exam data, prior test results, etc.) or can encrypt and / or encode all transmissions with any data that is associated with consumers. In certain of these modalities, data and / or communications can be encrypted and / or encrypted using any known methods and mechanisms.
[072] Although figure 3 illustrates an example portion of the systems, devices and components that can be included in the consumer diagnostic center 10, in certain embodiments, some or all of the consumer diagnostic centers provided through the consumer system
54/107 eye can include several other systems, devices and components (not shown in figure 3). For example, consumer diagnostic centers may include one or more recording devices, systems and / or associated software (for example, cameras, video cameras, audio recorders, etc.) that allow consumer diagnostic centers consumers to capture and record various data associated with administering tests and procedures for consumers. In certain modalities, such as when consumer diagnostic centers communicate with a remote professional and / or a technician on site, this data can be sent to these individuals together with (or instead of) consumer data and / or data consumer exams, such as allowing the remote professional to see consumers, see or hear responses from consumers, and / or determine whether certain equipment has been configured and operated approximately, and whether one or more tests have been properly administered . In certain of these modalities, such as when a real-time connection is established between the consumer diagnostic centers and the remote professional in real time (for example, through an audio / video conference system or similar).
[073] As another example, consumer diagnostic centers can include various payment-related devices, systems and / or software (for example, credit / debit card readers, devices for depositing money or checks, etc.) that allow the consumer diagnostics center to receive payments from consumers, as in connection with
55/107 the provision to consumers of eye health examinations, eye examinations and / or other services (for example, ordering products and services from third parties). As yet another example, consumer diagnostic centers may include several other devices and systems for providing information to consumers, such as printers, and / or for allowing consumers to download (download) and enter information, such as such as scanners, card readers, USB key readers, etc.
[074] Additionally, some or all of the components shown in figure 3 can be omitted from the consumer diagnostic centers provided through the eye test and evaluation system, or can be replaced by one or more components. For example, in certain embodiments, some or all of the consumer diagnostic centers may be implemented without the use of an on-site operator interface and / or may include only an eye health examination system 150 or eye examination system 140 Eye Examination System [075] Figure 4 is a block diagram that illustrates a portion of a consumer diagnostic center having an eye examination system in accordance with certain modalities. As discussed above, in certain embodiments, some or all of the consumer diagnostic centers provided with the eye test and assessment system may include an eye examination system. The eye examination system may comprise various ophthalmic devices and / or computer software and hardware that are used by the consumer diagnostic center
56/107 for the provision of eye exams for consumers. For example, as shown in figure 4, the eye examination system 140 may include an automatic phoropter 141, a lens housing 142, an auto-refractor 143, a lensometer 144, an eye frame 145 and an examination controller of view 148.
[076] In certain embodiments, the automatic phoropter 141 can comprise any type of phoropter and / or other similar device (or several of these phoropter and devices) that can be used for the presentation of prescription lenses in front of the consumer's eyes. The lens housing 142 may include one or more devices that are used to accommodate and maintain various grade lenses and / or allow the lenses to be presented through the automatic phoropter 141 to be switched on and off. In certain embodiments, the lens housing 142 includes a wide range of prescription lenses having different values for sphere, cylinder and / or axis. Although the automatic phoropter 141 and the lens holder 142 are shown as separate components in figure 4, in certain other embodiments, the lens holder 142 (or a portion thereof) can be integrated with the automatic phoropter 141.
[077] Auto-refractor 143 may include one or more suitable types of refractors and / or similar devices that can be used to measure the refractive error of a consumer's eye. In certain of these modalities, the autorefractor 143 can allow the system to determine approximate optical error specifications for sphere, cylinder and axis for one or both eyes of the
57/107 consumer and / or measurement of curvature in the deepest and flatest meridian of the corneas. In certain embodiments, the eye examination system 140 may include an auto-keratometer, which can be integrated with the auto-refractor 143 for the measurement of K readings that can be used for determining the back or base curve of a lens. consumer. The lensometer 144 may comprise one or more suitable types of lensometer and / or similar devices that can be used for measuring and determining the degree of optical lenses that are included in a pair of glasses or contact lenses (for example, glasses consumer). Eye frame 145 can be in the form of one or more frames, images or the like, which can be presented to consumers during various eye examination tests, such as to assist in determining the consumer's visual acuity. In certain of these embodiments, eye frame 145 may include one or more physical eye frames and / or virtual eye frames (for example, frames or images that are displayed on a computer screen or electronic viewfinder).
[078] As shown in figure 4, in certain embodiments, the eye exam system 140 may also include an eye exam controller 148, which may comprise one or more processing units, microcontrollers, computing devices, hardware and software and / or mechanical and electrical devices and components that control the operations of the eye examination equipment. In certain embodiments, the eyesight controller 148 may be connected to and / or communicate with equipment controller 130 to allow the
58/107 eye examination equipment is monitored and / or controlled by the consumer diagnostic center and / or one or more individuals (for example, an operator on site). In certain other embodiments, the eye examination controller 148 (or a portion thereof) can be integrated with the equipment controller 130 and / or the eye examination system (e.g., automatic phoropter 141, lensometer 144, etc.). ).
[079] In certain embodiments, some or all of these components (and others) can be used by the consumer diagnostic center in connection with administering a variety of tests and procedures for consumers, such as how to measure, capture and / or record data regarding consumers' visual acuity and / or visual capacity. For example, some or all of these components can be used in order to perform an automated refraction process that allows the refractive error of a consumer's eyes to be determined. The following description is intended to demonstrate the type of steps and operations that can be included in an example automated refraction process performed by a consumer diagnostic center in accordance with certain modalities.
[080] In response to a consumer ordering an eye exam, the consumer diagnostic center may determine a preliminary refractive error or an error range for the consumer's eyes. In certain embodiments, the preliminary error can be determined based on various data associated with the consumer, such as prescriptions or refractive errors associated with one or more eye exams
59/107 previous received by the consumer (for example, through a consumer diagnostic center and / or several professionals) that are retrieved from the consumer data (for example, stored in a local memory or on a CDC server or a database server). Alternatively or additionally, the consumer diagnostic center can use lensometer 144 to determine the preliminary refractive error by measuring the degree of the lens in a current pair of glasses or contact lenses provided by the consumer. In certain of these modalities, the preliminary refractive error can be used in the automated refraction process in several ways, such as to determine a starting point for other tests or calculations or to confirm or check that the process has been carried out properly (for example , to check that the final determination for refractive error is not in conflict with or appears to be highly unlikely in light of the consumer's previous refractive error). The consumer diagnostic center can also (or instead) measure the refractive error of the consumer's eyes using the auto refractor 143.
[081] The consumer diagnostic center can then use the automatic phoropter 141, lens housing 142 and / or eye frame 145 to administer an interactive refraction test for the consumer. In certain embodiments, this may include an iterative process in which the prescription lenses are placed in front of the consumer's eyes using the automatic phoropter 141 and / or the lens holder 142, questions are asked and answers are received from the consumer using the
60/107 consumer interface (for example, through the audio response system) and, based on consumer responses, the grade lenses are switched with lenses having a different grade, and so on. Questions may include asking the consumer to read information displayed on eye frame 145 and / or asking the consumer whether the information displayed appears to be clearer or less clear with current prescription lenses. In certain of these modalities, questions can be retrieved from a pre-defined set of stored questions and / or based on consumer responses to previous questions. This iterative process can continue until one or more conditions or criteria are met, such as receiving a particular combination of responses from the consumer, or determining that sufficient data has been acquired through the test.
[082] In certain modalities, after performing these tests and measurements (or at one or more points during the process), the consumer diagnostic center can record and / or store various types of data, such as the questions asked for and responses or inputs received from the consumer, tests, operations and steps performed, results of measurements, calculations performed, etc. In turn, some or all of this data can be stored locally and / or sent to a CDC server for axially consumer data and other consumer information. The consumer diagnostics center can then determine an updated refractive error for the consumer's eyes, such as when doing multiple calculations and applying one or more
61/107 algorithms predefined to exam data and consumer data, together with final refractive error and other information (for example, potential disturbances, defects or conditions detected by the consumer diagnostic center based on exam data ), and send the packaged data to a remote professional for review and confirmation. In response, the consumer diagnostics center can receive consumer assessment data (for example, revised refractive error, optical prescription, recommendations, referrals to see other professionals, etc.) from the remote professional.
[083] In certain other modalities, the consumer diagnostic center may establish a connection with the remote professional before, during or after the execution of the automated refraction procedure, such as to allow the remote professional to monitor and control the tests, view and interact with the consumer, review and analyze exam data and / or provide real-time assessment data. In yet other modalities, the consumer diagnostic center can automatically generate consumer assessment data based on the updated refractive error, exam data and / or consumer data. After generating or receiving consumer assessment data, the consumer diagnostic center can provide consumer assessment data (or a portion of it) to the consumer, such as by displaying information to the consumer and / or the provision to the consumer of one or more
62/107 printed documents (for example, an optical prescription) at the consumer diagnostic center, or the sending of information to the consumer (for example, via e-mail).
[084] As can be seen from the preceding, the automated refraction procedure performed through the consumer diagnostic center can include an objective portion (for example, using auto-refractor 143 for measuring the refractive error of the consumer lens. and / or a lensometer 144 for measuring the degree of current consumer lenses) and a subjective portion (for example, using the automatic phoropter 141, lens housing 142, eye frame 145 and / or a response system automated voice to present prescription lenses in front of the consumer's eyes and ask questions to the consumer and receive subjective responses from the consumer with reference to the consumer's perceived visual acuity with these prescription lenses). In a similar way, several other eye exam and / or eye health tests and procedures performed by the consumer diagnostic center can include objective and subjective components. An important benefit to using these types of tests is that the accuracy of these tests and the corresponding results is often significantly higher when compared to similar tests that only use an objective and subjective process.
[085] The automated refraction process of
63/107 The example discussed above is intended to be illustrative, not limiting, and it should be understood that, in certain other embodiments, one or more of the described steps or operations could be removed, rearranged or modified or could be replaced by one or more others steps or operations, and several other steps and operations can be added to the process. Also, the eye examination system illustrated in Figure 4 can be used by the consumer diagnostic center to perform various other tests and procedures associated with examining a consumer's vision. Gives
same way, O system of examination of View can to be modified, such how put omission, update or replacement in one or more of the components shown
in figure 4 and / or including other ophthalmic equipment, devices, instruments and / or other associated components, in order to incorporate new eye examination equipment, tests and procedures or to update existing ones.
[086] For example, the eye exam system 140 may include an electronic visual acuity monitor to allow the system to perform various tests associated with measuring a consumer's visual acuity over longer distances. In certain embodiments, the electronic visual acuity monitor can be used to determine the size of objects at specific distances that are visually perceptible to the consumer (for example, letters of size 20/20 or 20/30 or another object). In certain
64/107 of these modalities, the electronic visual acuity monitor (or a portion of it) can be integrated with the eye frame 14 5, such as in the form of a Snellen quadro 'frame on a self-ignition visual acuity monitor . In certain embodiments, the electronic visual acuity monitor can be used to administer various tests to measure visual acuity data for a consumer with and / or without lenses at various distances, based on subjective responses and inputs received from consumer, which can be compared with certain measurement standards. In certain of these modalities, the measurements and results of these tests may allow the system to assess changes in the consumer's view, such as in response to a new set of lenses or treatments received by the consumer (for example, medicine or surgery).
Eye Health Check System [087] Figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating a portion of a consumer diagnostic center that has an eye health check system in accordance with certain modalities. As discussed above, in certain embodiments, some or all of the consumer diagnostic centers provided with the eye test and assessment system may include an eye health examination system. The eye health examination system may comprise various ophthalmic devices, equipment and instruments, and other general hardware, mechanical and electronic devices and / or computer software and hardware that are
65/107 used by the consumer diagnostic center for the provision of eye health tests for consumers. For example, as shown in figure 5, the eye health examination system 150 may include a digital image trainer 151, a biomicroscope 152, a retina camera 153, a tonometer 154, visual field instruments 155 and an examination controller eye health 158.
[088] In certain embodiments, the digital image trainer 151 may comprise any suitable type of digital image forming device, such as a camera, video camera, sonar image maker, infrared image maker or another similar digital image maker (or a number of such devices), which can be used for capturing, recording and / or generating digital images for a consumer. For example, digital image trainer 151 can be used to obtain complete facial images of a consumer, and / or multiple proportional images in scale of the consumer's eyes, pupils, face or head (for example, an image complete facial). The biomicroscope 152 can be in the form of any type of microscope or microscopes that are used to magnify the vision of an anterior portion of a person's eyes (for example, the first third of a person's total eye length). In certain embodiments, the biomicroscope 152 and / or the digital image former 151 can be used for the detection and capture of images related to various tissue improvements
66/107 (for example, the tear layer, the cornea, an aqueous / anterior chamber, lens and / or posterior chamber).
[089] In certain embodiments, the retina camera 153 can comprise any suitable type of camera or other similar device, which allows for improved visualization and / or digital image formation of the real portion of a person's eyes (for example, two-thirds of a person's total eye length). For example, the retina camera 153 can be used for the detection and capture of images related to the vitreous, choroid, retina, macula and / or optic nerve of a person's eyes. The 154 tonometer can include any suitable device or device that can be used to measure the intraocular pressure of a person's eyes, such as detecting, diagnosing and / or assessing the possibility of glaucoma. In certain of these modalities, for example, the 154 tonometer can allow an intraocular pressure to be determined in millimeters of mercury (mmHg), such as by detecting the degree of recess (ie, resistance) of a probe at an angle of ninety degrees with the center of a person's cornea and using this measurement to calculate mmHg based on one or more predefined formulas.
[090] The eye health examination system 150 can also include various visual field instruments, such as visual field instruments 155 illustrated in figure 5. In certain embodiments, the
67/107 visual field 155 may comprise one or more instruments and devices that can be used for the detection and measurement of visual sensitivity and / or acuity in a person's peripheral vision (for example, things surrounding an object over which the vision of a person is primarily fixed or focused). For example, in certain of these modalities, visual field instruments 155 can be used to flash various visual stimuli of different candlelight intensities on a consumer's periphery, while the consumer's vision is focused on an object that is directly at front. In turn, these tests can determine the existence of various fields of vision defect, such as non-discernible vision patterns in a world view having four equal and symmetrical quadrants (for example, a person's blind spot, in which there is no there are rods and cones), which can be used for the detection, diagnosis and / or evaluation of certain conditions and disorders (for example, advanced glaucoma, detached retina, tumors, diabetic retinopathy or pigmentary retinitis).
[091] As shown in figure 5, in certain embodiments, the eye health examination system 150 may also include the eye health examination controller 158, which may comprise one or more processing units, microcontrollers, computing devices, hardware and software, and / or mechanical and electrical devices and components that control the operations of the health check system
68/107 eyepiece. In certain embodiments, the eye health check controller 158 may be connected to and / or communicate with an equipment controller 130 to allow the eye health check system to be monitored and / or controlled by the consumer diagnostic center and / or one or more individuals (for example, an operator on site). In certain other embodiments, the eye health check controller 158 (or a portion thereof) can be integrated with an equipment controller 130 and / or the eye health check system (for example, a digital image trainer 151, a 154 tonometer, etc.).
[092] In certain embodiments, some or all of these (and others) components may be used by the consumer diagnostic center in connection with administering a variety of tests and procedures for consumers associated with assessing consumers' eye health. For example, the consumer diagnostic center may use some or all of the eye health examination equipment to measure, capture and record consumer examination data relating to a consumer's eye health, process, analyze and evaluate customer data. consumer examination, packaging and delivering consumer examination data to a remote professional for review, receiving consumer assessment data from the remote professional and / or providing an eye health report to the consumer, in a similar manner to the automated refraction process described above.
69/107 [093] The following provides certain examples of ophthalmic equipment, devices, instruments and components, as well as tests and procedures that can be incorporated with the eye health examination system and offered to consumers through diagnostic centers consumer, according to certain modalities. It should be understood that the particular equipment and tests described below are intended to be of the nature of examples, not exhaustive, and various other equipment and tests may be used in connection with the eye health examination system, corresponding arrangements and systems, devices and methods described here. For example, like the eye examination equipment discussed above, the eye health examination system can be modified, such as by omitting, updating or replacing one or more of the components shown in figure 5, and / or including numerous other types ophthalmic equipment, devices, instruments and / or other associated components. As another example, the eye health examination system can be periodically updated and / or expanded to include new ones or modify existing eye health examination equipment, tests and procedures, thereby providing consumers with a wide range range of the most up-to-date equipment, tests and procedures associated with eye health examination.
[094] In certain embodiments, the eye health examination system may include one or more of the following ophthalmic devices, instruments and equipment
70/107
and / or can use one or more of the tests and procedures The follow in relationship with the provision to consumers in exams in Cheers eyepiece through From
consumer diagnostic centers:
• Calipers / CT scanners - one or more calipers, CT scanners and similar devices and instruments can be included, such as an ultrasound caliper, an optical coherence tomography (OCT), an optical coherence caliper (OCP), a horny computed tomography, a corneal waveform device (CWF), an anterior segment optical coherence tomography and / or an ultrasound biomicroscope. In certain modalities, these and other devices can be used for making measurements and performing various tests associated with the cornea, optic nerve, and / or retina and examining the anatomical relationship between the lens, iris and cornea (for example, anterior chamber depth and structures posterior to the iris, ciliary body position and cyclodialysis fissure). Ultrasound pachymetry can be used for non-invasive measurement of corneal thickness by confocal microscopy, ultrasound, optical biometrics with a camera, or an OCT and an OCP. Alternatively (or additionally), an ultrasonic transducer can be used to touch the cornea and / or a CWF can be used to capture an ultra high definition echogram. The OCT can be used for low coherence interferometry for evaluating optic nerve and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFL) (for example, measured in the peripapillary region with circular scans centered around the optic nerve head (ONH) ). In certain of these modalities,
71/107 RNFL thickness measurements can be shown in a TSNIT orientation and compared with combined age control subjects. In certain embodiments, these devices and tests may allow the consumer to monitor changes in a consumer's corneas, intraocular pressure, ONH and retina, assess changes in oil tissues and / or determine endothelial cell counts and detect corneal irregularities. In certain of these modalities, these devices and tests can be used to confirm diagnoses and monitor results after various types of interventions (for example, for the detection of a sudden wrinkle of chorioretinal folds at a posterior pole that are difficult to assess with an ophthalmoscopy. direct or indirect).
• Potential Acuity Meter (PAM) - a ΡΆΜ or similar device can be included for use in determining visual potential. For example, in certain embodiments, a ΡΆΜ having an integral slit lamp can be used for the alignment and focus of white points in the focus microscope for viewing by a consumer. As another example, the device can be used to focus on an acuity picture on a consumer's retina to remove lenticular effects and determine macular vision potential.
• Scheimflug Photography / Tomography - a Scheimflug camera or similar device can be included to perform a Scheimflug photograph and / or tomography and similar procedures for assessing a consumer's cornea and other portions of the front of the eye. In certain embodiments, these devices can provide images
72/107 digital from the anterior camera angle. In certain of these modalities, rotating versions of the devices can be included, which provide a three-dimensional digital image formation. Various software and programs can be used to measure specific angle parameters. In certain embodiments, these devices and tests may allow the system to detect, diagnose and / or analyze certain types of glaucoma (for example, narrow / closed angle glaucoma).
• Scanning Laser Polarimetry (SLP) - SLP can be used for monitoring RNFL and measuring thickness of peripapillary RNFL, such as by performing laser scans of the posterior retina and measuring birefringent properties of neurotubules contained in axons of ganglion cell. In certain of these modalities, the thickness of the RNFL in a circular area around the optic nerve can be determined and / or compared with the double hump generally observed in normal individuals, in which the upper and lower poles have the largest thickness of RNFL, in opposition to nasal and temporal poles. In certain embodiments, a GDx nerve fiber analyzer with variable corneal compensation can be used to account for individualized corneal differences.
• Heilderbeg Retinal Tomography (HRT) - HRT can be used for measuring optical disc tomography using lasers for scanning multiple cross-section images to create and analyze a three-dimensional representation of the optic nerve. In certain embodiments, the 3-D representation can be used for thickness assessment, optical caliculum surfaces,
73/107 calculation of the ratio of caliculo to disk, edge area, and other parameters of optical disk. In certain of these modalities, an HRT can be used for the assessment and monitoring of glaucoma.
• Background / Retina Cameras - one or more background cameras and / or retina cameras can be included, such as mydriatic / non-mydriatic retinal cameras, hybrid mydriatic / non-mydriatic retinal cameras, non-mydriatic background cameras, cameras autofluorescence. In certain embodiments, these and other devices can be used for background photography with and / or without the dilated pupil to create photographs of the inner surface of the eye, including the retina, optic disc, macula and posterior pole. In certain of these modalities, these images can be used for the evaluation of the posterior part of the eye and diseases or abnormalities of the retina, choroid, vitreous part, optic disc, macula and posterior pole.
• Fluoroscein angiography (IFVA) - an IFVA and / or a phase-contrast microscopy can be used for the diagnosis, assessment, monitoring and / or treatment of retinal abnormalities (eg, hypertensive and diabetes retinopathies) .
• Indocyanine Green Angiography (ICG) - ICG can be used to detect certain abnormalities or diseases not detected through IVFA.
• Cachet-Bonnet anesthesiometer - an anesthesiometer, such as a Cachet-Bonnet anesthesiometer, can be included, such as for measuring corneal sensitivity and, in turn, corneal diseases and abnormalities.
74/107 • Orbscan / Optical Biometer - An Orbscan or optical biometer can be included for biometrics with scanning ultrasound A. In certain modalities, measurements are made along a visual axis by the curvature of the cornea, which can provide data on the eye system and / or the degree of intraocular lens. In certain of these modalities, measurements can be used to detect common vision disorders.
• Tonometer - one or more tonometers or similar can be included, such as a Goldman Flattening Tonometer, a Non Flattening Tonometer, an Air Blowing Tonometer, an Eye Response Analyzer, a Contactless Tonometer, Shiotz with Recess, Tono-Pen, Indented Tonometer, and / or Pascal's Dynamic Contour. In certain embodiments, these and other devices can be used for the measurement of intraocular fluid eye pressure or corneal viscoelasticity, such as for monitoring corneal integrity and / or detecting certain pathologies, such as keratoconus and glaucoma.
[095] Additionally, in certain modalities, the eye health examination system may include numerous other types of ophthalmic devices, instruments and equipment and / or may use numerous other types of tests and procedures in connection with the provision to consumers of medical examinations. eye health through consumer diagnostic centers, including a visual acuity tester, a macular phototension test, a functional vision analyzer, a stereopsis test, a color test (for example, Ishihara or Farnsworth flashlight), puncture potential acuity test
75/107 pin, contrast sensitivity test, waveform aberrometer, refractive / corneal grade analyzer, slit lamp biomicroscopy, manual slit lamp, Seidel test with slit lamp, Van Herick test with slit lamp, Goldman's tonometer with slit lamp, an oblique flashlight test, an oscillating flashlight test, an exophthalmometer, ERG and mERG, visually evoked response test, electro-oculogram, coverage test, eye mobility, screen Amsler tests, perimeters (eg, automated static limit perimeter), Swedish interactive limit algorithm test, Esterman test on Humphrey perimeter, automated short wavelength perimeter, frequency doubling technology, predicted preferred hyperacuity perimeter , pupillometer for pupillary distance, pupillometer for visual stimuli, ophthalmoscope, direct / indirect ophthalmoscope, ophthalmoscope with confocal laser, magnifying ophthalmoscope dual ification of dry eye / tear film dysfunction, radioscope, optical microspherometer, progressive addition lens finder, operating microscope, slit lamp gonioscope, direct / indirect goniolent, magnetic resonance imaging, imaging with nuclear magnetic resonance, magnetic resonance tomography, computed tomography, computed axial tomography.
Variable Levels of Automation and Assistance [096] As mentioned above, the eye testing and assessment system can be implemented using different levels of automation and / or types of assistance from individuals at the site and / or
76/107 remote. What follows describes several example implementations with varying degrees of assistance and automation, according to certain modalities.
[097] In certain modalities, for example, the system (or a portion of it) can be configured to be fully automated, thereby allowing consumers to obtain eye examinations and / or eye health examinations at a diagnostic center. consumer without assistance from others. In certain of these modalities, consumer diagnostic centers can use and run software applications, programs and routines that are designed to obtain varied information from consumers through the consumer interface (for example, consumer data) and procedures for administration to consumers (for example, based on consumer data and / or selections received from desired services with reference to consumers). Likewise, consumer diagnostic centers can use and run software in connection with administering one or more tests to the consumer, such as programs that allow consumer diagnostic centers to control and operate eye equipment, devices and components related information, extract instructions, questions, test data and other information for consumers, and / or receive and record responses and input from consumers, measurements, readings and other data resulting from administering the tests of consumers.
77/107 procedures. In turn, after administering tests and procedures (or during such administration), consumer diagnostic centers can process and analyze the data captured and recorded through the tests, and / or other data (for example, consumer data ), using various algorithms, measures and software, in order to automatically evaluate the consumer's vision and / or eye health. In certain of these modalities, consumer diagnostic centers can use and run various software for the self-generation of one or more reports, documents and the like referring to the consumer's vision and / or eye health (for example, eye health reports, prescriptions , recommendations, referrals, etc.) that can be extracted and / or provided to consumers.
[098] In certain embodiments, the system (or a portion of it) can be configured to enable operators on site (for example, operators, technicians or assistants in locations where consumer diagnostic centers are located) to facilitate and assist to consumers with one or more aspects of eye exams, eye health exams and / or other services, resources and functionality provided through consumer diagnostic centers. In certain of these modalities, for example, operators on site can simply assist consumers with one or more processes associated with the use of consumer diagnostic centers, such as creating an account, choosing services
78/107, printing an eye or vision health report, forwarding data to third parties, etc. As another example, on-site operators can assist and guide consumers during the administration of various tests and procedures, such as helping consumers to take the required positions and answer or replicate certain questions or other data extracted during the tests. In certain of these modalities, on-site operators can provide assistance to consumers on an as-needed or as-desired basis, such as in response to a consumer selecting an option or otherwise indicating a desire for help on the spot.
[099] In certain of these modalities, on-site operators can monitor and / or control ophthalmic equipment and devices (for example, through an on-site operator interface), such as during one or more tests or procedures to ensure administration and / or before and after tests and procedures to initialize, configure and / or reset the equipment. Likewise, in certain of these modalities, operators on site can also (or instead) monitor and control the administration of one or more tests, such as by selecting and / or modifying the questions or outputs presented to consumers based on previous consumer responses and / or test results. In certain other modalities, some or all assistance provided by and a feature associated with operators on site can be provided
79/107 by one or more remote operators (for example, a technician located at a remote call center or an assistant associated with a remote professional).
[100] According to certain modalities, the system (or a portion of it) can be configured to allow remote professionals (for example, professionals who are not in the locations where consumer diagnostic centers are located) to facilitate and assist consumers with one or more aspects of eye examinations, eye health examinations and / or other services, resources and functionality provided through consumer diagnostic centers. For example, in certain preferred embodiments, when a consumer receives an eye exam and / or an eye health exam through a consumer diagnostic center, various data associated with the consumer and one or more of the tests and procedures administered to the consumer are provided to a remote professional (for example, via a remote professional device), to allow the remote professional to confirm, evaluate and diagnose the consumer's visual ability and / or eye health and / or create a vision report and / or eye health (or a similar assessment) to be provided to the consumer.
[101] In certain of these modalities, this process can occur asynchronously. In other words, after the consumer has received the eye exam and / or the eye health exam, the system can deliver
80/107 consumer data and consumer exam data for the remote professional (or make that data available to the remote professional through a web-based service and / or a software application installed on the remote professional device). At some later time, the remote professional can then review and analyze the data, diagnose and confirm various aspects of consumer vision and eye health, and generate and / or send back consumer assessment data (for example, a vision, an eye health report, optical prescriptions, etc.), which can then be sent or made accessible to the consumer (for example, at a consumer diagnostic center, on a consumer associated device, etc.).
[102] In certain other modalities, assistance from remote professionals can occur synchronously. In certain of these modalities, when a consumer orders an eye exam and / or an eye health exam through a consumer diagnostic center (or at some point during the exam or the exam process), the system can be configured to establish a real-time connection with a remote professional. As a result, this allows the remote professional to review and evaluate consumer survey data and provide consumer assessments and reports in real time or near real time. Additionally, or as an alternative, the remote professional may be able to monitor and control ophthalmic equipment
81/107 instruments and / or administration of tests and procedures for the consumer, in a manner similar to that described above for the operator on-site (or remote), through the real-time connection with the consumer diagnostic center.
[103] For example, in certain modalities, some or all of the ophthalmic equipment and instruments in the consumer diagnostic center can be connected to a personal computer running Windows or any other suitable operating system and having a client application installed, which provides a interface with (and send commands to and receive data from) the equipment. The client application can be any suitable application capable of providing a remote interface with ophthalmic equipment, such as an Eyelogic touch-enabled Windows application available from Eyelogic Systems, Inc .. In certain embodiments, the client application can store various data (for example, in a database stored in a local memory at the consumer diagnostic center), including data received from ophthalmic and / or consumer equipment. In certain of these modalities, such as when the personal computer and / or the consumer diagnostic center includes several recording devices (for example, a video recorder, a microphone, etc.), the client application can record and / or store the eye exam and / or the eye health exam session (e.g., interactions with the consumer, tests administered to the consumer,
82/107 etc.).
[104] In certain embodiments, the client application and / or the personal computer can be connected to a telepresence system, which can be any system suitable for establishing a real-time connection to and routing or continuous transmission data to or from a remote agent (for example, a remote professional via a remote professional device). For example, the client application and / or a personal computer can be connected to a telepresence client structure or endpoint, such as a CTS500 Endpoint available from Cisco Systems, over any suitable network and / or network protocol (for example, the Internet and / or a Session Initiation Protocol). In certain of these modalities, the telepresence server and / or a server structure can be integrated with and / or run on one or more CDC servers on RPM servers included in the eye testing and evaluation system (such as CDC 20 and 20A to 20C and / or the RPM server 24 shown and described above in relation to figures 1 and 2).
[105] According to certain modalities, the telepresence server and / or the server structure can be configured to route the exam and / or the exam session to an available remote professional, such as through a CTS-500 Endpoint or another suitable telepresence client structure or endpoint associated with the remote professional (for example,
83/107 an endpoint integrated with or connected to a remote professional device). As a result, the data associated with the exam and / or the exam session can be transmitted continuously or otherwise delivered to the remote professional in real time. In certain of these modalities, the endpoint associated with the remote professional can be configured to send various data back to the endpoint associated with the consumer diagnostic center, thereby allowing two-way communication between the remote professional and the consumer. For example, the remote professional can send back commands to control ophthalmic equipment and / or test administration, audio / video data to be extracted to the consumer (eg instructions, questions, guides, etc.) and / or assessment data regarding the consumer's vision and / or eye health (for example, vision and / or eye health reports, prescriptions, recommendations, referrals, etc.).
[106] As shown by the preceding discussion, the ability for consumers who are receiving eye exams and / or eye health exams at a consumer diagnostic center to connect and interface with remote professionals in real time provides several benefits important. One of these benefits is that it allows remote professionals to touch and feel consumers, such as by interacting with and interrogating consumers, thereby allowing remote professionals
84/107 provide a more meaningful and accurate assessment of consumers' vision and eye health. Another of these benefits is that it allows consumers to receive eye exams and / or eye health exams in virtually the same way as in a screening or in-person exam, while significantly reducing the time, inconvenience and / or expense associated with visiting a professional office to obtain screening or examination in person.
[107] In addition, by using one or more of the systems and methods for implementing varying degrees of automation and / or assistance in consumer diagnostic centers, the eye testing and evaluation system allows for a great deal of flexibility and customization capability. For example, certain consumer diagnostic centers could be set up to provide fully automated eye examinations and / or eye examinations or examinations with limited assistance in place, thereby allowing consumers to obtain examinations with little or no assistance and minimizing the corresponding time and cost required. In certain modalities, these fully automated (or minimally assisted) eye examinations and / or eye health examinations could be in the form of limited or partial examinations (for example, examinations having a limited set of tests and procedures that are capable of being automatically processed and evaluated by the system). In turn, some or all of these diagnostic centers
85/107 consumers (or others) can give consumers the option of receiving a more expensive or comprehensive eye exam and / or eye exam (for example, at a higher cost), such as exams that require assistance of a remote professional. Vision and Eye Health Assessments [108] As mentioned above, in connection with a consumer receiving an eye examination and / or an eye health examination through a consumer diagnostic center, the consumer diagnostic center and / or the eye testing and assessment systems can generate and / or provide the consumer with consumer assessment data regarding the consumer's vision and / or eye health, such as one or more reports, charts, documents, summaries, test results, recommendations , referrals, treatments, etc. In certain of these modalities, some or all of the consumer assessment data may be automatically generated by the consumer diagnostic center and / or eye assessment and testing system, such as by applying various software and algorithms to and processing another. form of data associated with administering tests and procedures for the consumer and / or other data (for example, consumer data). Alternatively or additionally, some or all of consumer assessment data may be received (or be based on data received) from a remote professional, such as in response to the provision of consumer exam data and consumer data for the professional
86/107 remote for review and analysis.
[109] In certain modalities, such as when a consumer receives an eye exam through a consumer diagnostic center, consumer assessment data may include vision assessment data, such as optical prescription, a set of optical specifications and / or an order for glasses and / or contact lenses (eg, FDA Class I medical OTC devices). In certain of these modalities, such as when consumer assessment data is received (or based on data received) from a remote professional, the optical prescription (and / or optical specifications or an order) can be signed by the remote professional (for example, using an electronic signature or similar mechanism) and dated. The optical prescription may or may not indicate an expiration date and / or it may indicate to the consumer that the optical prescription can be filled out by the optical distributor of the consumer's choice.
[110] In certain modalities, vision assessment data may include data and information relating to one or more parameters associated with the consumer's visual acuity, such as the parameters used to determine the refractive error of the consumer's eyes. For example, vision assessment data may include intensities or curvatures in degrees and / or diopters (for example, converted from millimeters of radius of curvature to the power of diopter intensity) for one or more components of visual acuity, such as (1) sphere
87/107 in diopters (for example, in relation to simple myopia / short vision and hyperopia / distant vision); (2) cylinder power in diopters (for example, in relation to astigmatism), (3) cylinder axis in degrees from 0 to 180 (for example, in relation to astigmatism); and / or (4) another sphere in diopters, such as a bifocal power referring to an additional correction necessary for reading (for example, in relation to presbyopia, typically present in individuals over 45 years old). In certain modalities, vision assessment data may include information indicating corrected and / or uncorrected visual acuity for the consumer's eyes, which may include each eye separately, for example, 20/4 in the left eye at a distance and / or for both eyes together. In certain of these modalities, vision assessment data may include an explanation for these visual acuity (for example, in a request for a person with 20/40 vision to see that someone with normal 20/20 vision sees at a distance of 40 feet, the person with 20/40 vision must be 20 feet away from the same object - 1 foot - 0.3048 m).
[111] In addition to optical prescription (or instead), vision assessment data may include a vision report that provides information regarding any specific vision or refractive disorders or conditions that have been detected and / or diagnosed through examination by sight. For example, the vision report can indicate whether or not the consumer has certain vision disorders or conditions, such as simple myopia; simple hyperopia; mixed composite astigmatism, hypertopic astigmatism,
88/107 myopic astigmatism and / or presbyopia. If any of these vision disorders or conditions are detected and / or diagnosed, the vision report may include additional information regarding the disorder, such as a general description, recommended treatment, etc. In certain of these modalities, if one or more particular types of disorders or conditions are detected, the vision report and / or the vision assessment data may include a referral for the consumer to visit a professional in person.
[112] According to certain modalities, such as when a consumer receives an eye health exam through the consumer diagnostic center, consumer assessment data may include eye health assessment data. In certain of these modalities, eye health assessment data may include an eye health report, in a similar way to the vision report described above. For example, the eye health report may include various data and information that indicates whether the consumer's eyes have been shown to be normal, healthy and / or functioning properly. In certain of these modalities, the eye health report can indicate whether or not the consumer has eye disorders or conditions, such as glaucoma, corneal defects, color blindness, etc., and may include additional information regarding any
disorder or condition like That what is it detected and / or diagnosed.[113] In certain modalities, When one or more disorders or conditions of eye were detected and / or
diagnosed, eye health assessment data can
89/107 indicate whether there is a need for the consumer to seek additional evaluation, testing and / or treatment through an in-person consultation with an eye care professional (for example, an eye surgeon or other specialist). In certain modalities, such as when consumer survey data is provided to a remote professional for review, the need for an in-person assessment may be based on determinations or recommendations received from the remote professional. Alternatively or additionally, the system can be configured to automatically detect and / or flag certain examination data or results, as indicating a potential need for the consumer to seek an additional assessment (as described in greater detail above). In certain embodiments, eye health assessment data may include referrals for the consumer to see one or more eye care professionals in particular. In certain of these modalities, the eye health report may indicate that referral is urgent and / or mandatory, such as to avoid or reduce the risk of permanent vision loss.
[114] According to certain modalities, vision assessment data and / or eye health assessment data may include one or more recommendations for the consumer with reference to future eye exams and / or eye exams. For example, vision assessment data and / or eye health assessment data may indicate a recommendation for how often the consumer should get eye exams and / or eye health exams (for example, once a year, a once every two
90/107 years, etc.). In certain embodiments, these recommendations may be based on various consumer data (for example, the consumer's age, ethnicity, gender, vision / eye health, individual and family medical history, length of time since the consumer's prior examination) ) and / or risk profiles and similar information provided by several well-known vision and eye health organizations (for example, the American Academy of Ophthalmology). Likewise, in certain modalities, the urgency of other recommendations (for example, referrals to see other professionals) can be determined in a similar way.
[115] While the preceding discussion describes certain types of information that can be included in the consumer assessment data provided for consumers receiving eye exams and / or eye health exams through consumer diagnostic centers, it should be understood that particular types of information described are intended to be examples, not exhaustive, and several other types of information could easily be included and / or used, instead of some or all of the information described above. Similarly, although vision assessment data and eye health assessment data are described separately in the discussion above, it should be understood that, in certain modalities, some or all of the data and information associated with the vision assessment data and eye health assessment data can be combined and integrated. Per
91/107 example, in certain modalities, such as when the consumer receives an eye exam and an eye health exam, or when the eye health exam incorporates one or more tests associated with an eye exam, the assessment data of consumers may include a combined vision / eye health report having some or all of the information associated with the vision assessment data and the eye health assessment data.
[116] In certain modalities, consumers may be able to access consumer assessment data (or a portion of it) through consumer diagnostic centers. In certain of these modalities, such as when the eye exam and / or the eye health exam are fully automated (or only involve assistance from an on-site operator) or when a real-time connection is established with a remote professional , consumer assessment data may be provided to the consumer at the consumer diagnostic center (for example, displayed on one or more screens) during and / or shortly after the consumer receives the eye exam and / or the health exam ocular. Alternatively (or in addition), the consumer may be able to access consumer assessment data upon returning to the same consumer diagnostic center (and / or one or more other consumer diagnostic centers) at a later time. In certain embodiments, the consumer may be able to print some or all of the consumer assessment data (for example, a
92/107 optical prescription or referral) using one or more printers provided at the consumer diagnostic center.
[117] According to certain modalities, consumer assessment data (or a portion thereof) can be sent and / or made accessible to consumers through various other systems and devices, such as one or more personal computing devices associated with consumers. For example, consumer review data can be sent via email or any other suitable delivery mechanism. As another example, consumers may be able to access consumer assessment data from a wide range of computing devices, such as when authenticating to a web-based service or application provided by the consumer diagnostic center. and / or through the eye test and assessment system and / or through a software application (for example, a customer application, a mobile application, etc.) installed on consumer devices. In a similar way, consumers may be able to instruct the consumer diagnostic center and / or the eye test and review system to forward some or all of the consumer review data to various third parties and / or third party systems, such as a remote professional, an optical lens lab, or a third party provider of vision and eye health products and / or services. In certain of these modalities, data
93/107 consumer assessment can be sent to the consumer and / or one or more third parties automatically or only in response to a request by the consumer.
Data Analysis for Diagnosis and Risk Prediction [118] According to certain modalities, such as those illustrated and described in relation to figures 1 to 3, consumer diagnostic centers and / or other components of the system for testing and evaluating risk eye (for example, CDC servers, database servers, etc.) can store and / or update a wide range of data in connection with the provision of eye examinations and / or eye health examinations for consumers. The eye test and assessment system can store and / or update various consumer data (for example, background and demographic data, previous eye exam results and / or eye health exam, individual and family medical history, and other characteristics and preferences) associated with consumers. Similarly, the eye test and assessment system can store and / or update consumer exam data (eg, consumer inputs and responses, instrument measurements, tests and procedures performed, etc.), assessment data from (eg reports, prescriptions, recommendations, referrals, etc. generated by the system and / or received from remote professionals) and / or other types of data associated with eye examinations and / or eye health assessments provided for
94/107 consumers through consumer diagnostic centers.
[119] In certain embodiments, the eye testing and evaluation system can store and / or update analytical test data associated with the review, analysis and processing of consumer exam data and / or consumer data, such as one or more algorithms and formulas (for example, for the calculation of refractive error) and / or various standards, standards and measures (for example, normal or acceptable ranges for certain parameters) that can be applied to the measures or test results and / or used in any other way in connection with the detection or diagnosis of various disorders, defects and conditions and assessment of the eyesight and eye health of consumers. Additionally (or alternatively), the eye test and assessment system can store and / or update risk prediction data for various risk factors, risk profiles, correlations and similar information that is associated with related disorders to vision and the eye, defects and conditions that are most likely to occur in certain groups of individuals.
[120] In certain of these modalities, risk prediction data may include risk factors and the like that are based on a person's background (for example, welders are more likely to have corneal scars that can cause irreversible loss of vision), ethnicity (for example, Hispanic Americans are 20% more likely to acquire glaucoma, and African Americans are 40% more likely to acquire glaucoma compared to Caucasian Americans), income (for example,
95/107 lower-income families typically have less frequent eye tests and refractions, and less primary health care, and are more prone to irreversible vision loss caused by diabetes and hypertension), previous medical history (for example, individuals with pre-existing hypertension, diabetes or a history of eye disease and / or disorders, eye surgery, etc., are more prone to certain systemic eye disorders and syndromes, such as syphilis, Bell's Palsy (peripheral facial paralysis), herpes, etc. ), age (for example, individuals over sixty are more prone to age-related diseases (AREDS), such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, etc.).
[121] According to certain modalities, some or all of these data (and several other data) can be used by the eye test and assessment system in several different ways. In certain embodiments, the eye testing and evaluation system can use this data to determine whether consumers are at a higher risk for various vision and eye-related disorders, defects and / or conditions. For example, in response to receiving new or updated consumer data (and / or other data) from a consumer, the consumer diagnostic center and / or the eye testing and evaluation system can compare consumer data with prediction data to determine whether consumer demographics, characteristics, etc. match any profiles or risk factors in the prediction data. In certain of these modalities, the eye test and assessment system can
96/107 create and store an individual risk profile for new consumers, which includes a list of any high-risk disorders, defects and / or conditions identified for the consumer (for example, prior screening of new consumers) and / or update the individual risk profile, when additional or updated consumer data is received.
[122] In turn, the individual risk profile (or similar data) could be included with consumer exam data for the consumer that is sent to a remote professional (for example, to assist in reviewing and evaluating the professional remote) and / or used for the selection, modification and / or layout of tests and procedures administered to the consumer and various recommendations provided to the consumer. In certain of these modalities, the eye testing and assessment system may use individual risk profiles and / or other data (for example, consumer data and consumer assessment data), for the creation and updating of an insurance plan. personalized test for a consumer. For example, the personalized test plan may include one or more personalized eye exams and eye health exams (for example, specifying a particular group of tests and procedures to be administered), a recommended schedule for receiving those eye exams and eye health exams, recommended actions, medications or treatments, and / or advice to see one or more eye care professionals in person (for example, only once and / or on a periodic basis).
[123] In certain embodiments, the test and
97/107 eye assessment may use some or all of the stored data described above in connection with the assessment of consumer exam data and other data associated with administering eye exams and / or eye health exams to consumers through centers consumer diagnostics. For example, the eye test and assessment system can process and analyze consumer exam data based on analytical test data, such as for automatic calculation of various parameters using predefined formulas and / or detection and diagnosis of certain disorders, defects and conditions by comparing consumer survey data with one or more standards (for example, normal or acceptable ranges or results). In certain of these modalities, such as when consumer exam data is sent to remote professionals, the eye test and assessment system may instead (or in addition) use analytical test data for pre-processing and packaging of data. consumer survey data before their provision to the remote professional. For example, in connection with the measurement or calculation of a particular parameter (for example, intraocular pressure), the eye test and evaluation system can create a chart or graph that shows the parameter to the consumer in relation to a range acceptable value associated with the parameter. Importantly, pre-processing and packaging of consumer survey data that is provided to remote professionals makes it easier and more efficient for remote professionals to review the data and / or confirm the results, thereby reducing the associated time evaluation and
98/107 provision of reports for each consumer.
[124] In certain embodiments, the eye test and assessment system may use some or all of the stored data described above for tracking and assessing consumer vision and / or eye health over time. For example, when a consumer receives an eye exam and / or an eye health exam through a consumer diagnostic center, exam data and / or assessment data can be compared with data from previous eye exams, eye health examinations or other similar tests received by the consumer (for example, data associated with previous tests received through a consumer diagnostic center, from an external professional or a combination thereof). In certain of these modalities, the eye test and evaluation system can generate and / or update various charts, graphs, images, summaries, etc., using the current and previous examination and / or evaluation data, as for if the progression of one or more parameters, defects, disturbances and / or conditions is shown. For example, after a consumer receives an eye exam, the eye test and assessment system can create or update a chart that illustrates changes in the refractive error of the consumer's eyes for a specified period. In certain embodiments, these charts, graphs and / or other tracking data associated with the progression of the consumer's vision and / or eye health can be included with the consumer examination data that is sent to remote professionals in order to assist remote professionals in making an informed assessment and diagnosis.
99/107 [125] In turn, by keeping track of the consumer's vision and / or eye health over time, the eye test and assessment system can determine whether a treatment previously prescribed for the consumer is working ( for example, if there has been any improvement or change in a defect or condition being treated) and / or evaluating the result of a surgery, operation or procedure previously performed on the consumer. Similarly, the eye test and assessment system can use tracking data in connection with the detection and / or diagnosis of certain disorders, defects and / or conditions and / or the determination as to whether a consumer should be referred for one or more external eye care professionals. For example, if the eye test and assessment system detects that a consumer's visual acuity is getting worse or not improving, despite the use of refractive lenses, this could be a strong indication that the consumer has a medical anomaly, disorder or a disease (for example, an inflammation or infection of the optic nerve, amblyopia, cataracts, etc.) and the system can refer the consumer to an eye care professional or specialist (for example, a cataract specialist).
[126] According to certain modalities, the eye test and assessment system may use some or all of the data stored above to adjust or modify certain existing risk factors, risk profiles, patterns, correlations, etc. and / or identify new risk factors. For example, the eye test and assessment system can analyze consumer data,
100/107 consumer and / or consumer assessment data to search for potential correlations between various parameters (for example, Asian American women are 30% more at risk of developing cataracts). Similarly, the eye test and assessment system can analyze this data to confirm the accuracy of existing risk factors and correlations and / or various standards and norms (for example, normal ranges for parameters). In turn, as consumer data and examination and assessment data are continuously collected, compiled and processed by the system, these risk factors, correlations and / or standards can be periodically updated to reflect the data.
Example Method for Providing an Eye Test and Evaluation Service [127] Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating an example method 600 for administering an eye test and evaluation service in accordance with certain modalities of this invention. Initially, one or more tests associated with an eye health exam and / or an eye exam are provided for a consumer (step 610). In certain embodiments, one or more tests can be administered at a consumer diagnostic center. Then, consumer exam data for the eye health exam and / or an eye exam is generated (step 620). Consumer examination data may include any data associated with the consumer and any data that would allow or assist a remote professional to assess the consumer's eye health and visual ability, detect and diagnose certain disorders, defects and conditions and / or
101/107 confirm that one or more of the tests and procedures were administered correctly. In certain embodiments, consumer examination data may include data associated with the consumer (for example, the consumer's name, age, sex, race, medical history, previous test results, etc.) and data associated with a or more of the tests administered to the consumer (for example, responses, inputs and selections from the consumer, instrument measurements and readings, test results, etc.).
[128] Consumer scan data is transmitted over a computer network (for example, over the Internet) from a consumer diagnostic center to a diagnostic center server (step 630). The diagnostic center server can store all or a portion of the consumer scan data. The diagnostic center server provides access to one or more professional devices to allow the professional device to access consumer scan data (step 640). This allows a professional operating a professional device to review consumer exam data from a location that is located remotely from the consumer diagnostic center, where one or more tests are administered to the consumer. In certain modalities, a professional can have access to consumer exam data in real time, as the tests are being administered to the consumer. In certain modalities, a professional can access consumer exam data after the tests are administered to the consumer.
[129] After or while the professional is reviewing the
102/107 consumer examination data, consumer evaluation data are generated, which refer to the review of the eye care professional and the evaluation of consumer examination data (step 650). Consumer assessment data received from the remote professional may include various reports, diagnoses, recommendations and other information indicating the results of eye health and vision tests and procedures administered to the consumer. In certain embodiments, consumer assessment data may include an eye health report or may be used to generate an eye health report. The eye health report may include a summary of the consumer's eye health, visual acuity, test results and procedures, diagnostics, optical prescriptions, pharmaceutical prescriptions, recommendations, treatment instructions, referrals to see other eye care professionals and / or others data that is associated with the consumer, the professional or the consumer's visit to the consumer diagnostic center.
[130] The eye health report, which is based, at least in part, on consumer assessment data, is then provided to the consumer via the network (step 660). The eye health report can be provided to a consumer in a number of ways. In certain embodiments, the eye health report may be presented to the consumer through the diagnostic center 10. In certain embodiments, the consumer may be allowed access to the eye health report using one or more computing devices associated with the consumer. In certain modalities,
103/107 the consumer may be allowed to download (via download) a copy of the eye health report from a website, after authenticating (for example, with a username and password) to an account on the website. In certain instances, the eye health report can be transmitted to the consumer via email.
Extended Services and Functionality [131] In certain modalities, consumers may be able to view, compare, order and / or purchase various products and services related to vision and / or eye health through consumer and / or diagnostic centers. eye test and evaluation system. For example, consumer diagnostic centers and / or the eye test and assessment system can store and / or access a variety of information associated with the products (for example, glasses, contact lenses, etc.) that are offered by a or more third parties. As a result, consumers may be able to access, view and / or browse through these products at consumer diagnostic centers (for example, via a display screen included in the consumer interface). Consumers may also or instead be able to access products from other devices (for example, a consumer-associated computing device), such as through a web-based service or a client application installed on the device consumer.
[132] In certain embodiments, consumer diagnostic centers and / or the eye test and assessment system may display a virtual representation or simulation of the
104/107 consumer using or having a particular product, in order to illustrate how certain products would look to the consumer. For example, the consumer may be able to see a virtual representation of his face and / or his head, and select one or more glasses to be shown with the virtual representation. In certain of these modalities, the virtual representation of the consumer can be based on data obtained through one or more tests associated with eye examinations and / or eye health examinations (for example, through digital imaging devices, cameras video, etc.).
[133] According to certain modalities, consumer diagnostic centers and / or the eye test and assessment system can be configured to recommend one or more products and services related to vision and / or eye health to consumers. For example, the eye testing and evaluation system may select one or more products for recommendation to a consumer based on various data associated with the consumer, such as driver data (e.g., income, sex, age, products previously purchased, etc.) and / or consumer examination and assessment data (eg refractive error, optical specifications, astigmatism, etc.). Similarly, the eye testing and evaluation system can determine product recommendations for a consumer based on data associated with similar characteristics, background, disturbances, etc. In certain other modalities, product recommendations may be based on a preferred status associated with one or more third party sellers (for example, sellers who pay a fee
105/107 to emphasize their products and services).
[134] In certain embodiments, after a consumer has browsed through and selected one or more products and services, the consumer may be able to order and / or purchase the selected products and services through the consumer diagnostics center. In certain of these modalities, the consumer diagnostic center and / or the eye testing and evaluation system may forward various data to third parties associated with the products and services purchased, such as order data, driver data, or customer assessment data consumer (for example, optical specifications).
[135] In certain embodiments, the various advertisements and / or promotional materials (for example, coupons, offers, discounts, etc.) can be presented or provided to consumers through consumer diagnostic centers. In certain of these modalities, for example, advertisements and promotions may be shown to consumers (for example, through one or more displays included with the consumer interface) before, during and / or after the consumer receives an eye exam and / or an eye health check through the consumer diagnostic center. In certain embodiments, advertising and / or promotional materials may include materials that are associated with various products and services related to vision and / or eye health, and / or may include materials for a wide range of other consumer products and services. . In certain embodiments, such as when the consumer diagnostics center includes a printing device, consumers may be able to print
106/107 a printed copy of one or more promotions, such as coupons. Alternatively or additionally, consumers may be able to select an option to forward the advertisement or promotion to themselves (for example, via email or text).
[136] Importantly, the incorporation of advertising and promotional materials and other similar services (for example, allowing sellers to pay for a preferred status) provides certain benefits for consumers. One benefit is that, given the revenue generated through these mechanisms, consumers may be able to receive eye exams and / or an eye health exam at a significantly reduced cost, or they may even be able to receive certain services free of charge, from that way encouraging consumers to receive these exams on a regular basis.
[137] In certain embodiments, the eye test and assessment system can be configured to send various notifications and messages to consumers (for example, via email, text and / or through one or more associated computing devices consumers). For example, in certain modalities, the eye test and assessment system may send a message to a consumer to remind the consumer that it is time to receive an eye exam and / or an eye health exam and / or to remind the consumer. consumer about an upcoming appointment with an external professional (for example, in connection with a previous referral for an in-person assessment). Similarly, the eye test and assessment system can send messages to a consumer requesting
107/107 a confirmation that the consumer had an appointment and / or visited an external professional (for example, in the case where a referral for urgent follow-up tests was provided for the consumer).
[138] It is to be understood that the various systems, devices and methods described in connection with the preceding figures are examples, and any other suitable systems, devices and / or methods can be used. The foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this invention, and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. As an example, although certain modalities of the eye testing and evaluation system have been described in relation to a particular number of consumer diagnostic centers and / or remote professional devices having certain formats or types, the platform can include any number , format and type of consumer diagnostic centers and / or remote professional devices. As an example, although consumer diagnostic centers have been described as having certain sample ophthalmic equipment and instruments, consumer diagnostic centers can use virtually any suitable type of such devices and instruments. Someone skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced in another way than in the described modalities, which are presented for purposes of illustration and not for limitation.

权利要求:
Claims (7)
[1]
1. System for the provision of eye and vision health examinations, FEATURED by understanding:
a consumer diagnostics center set up to generate consumer exam data for a consumer's eye exam, the consumer diagnostics center including:
a user interface configured to receive input from and output information to the consumer;
ophthalmic equipment for administering a plurality of tests for the consumer, the plurality of tests including at least one eye health test; and an equipment controller configured to control the operation of the ophthalmic equipment;
a diagnostic center server configured to receive consumer examination data from the consumer diagnostic center and allow consumer examination data to be accessed by an eye care professional over a network; and a professional device associated with the eye care professional, the professional device configured to:
receiving at least a portion of the consumer scan data from the diagnostic center server;
displaying received consumer examination data to the eye care professional; and the generation of consumer evaluation data related to the review and evaluation of the
[2]
2/7 eye care of the displayed consumer survey data;
where the eye health report based, at least in part, on consumer assessment data, is provided to the consumer via the network.
2. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the diagnostic center server is integrated with the consumer diagnostic center.
[3]
3. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the ophthalmic equipment comprises eye health equipment that allows consumers to receive eye health examinations
understanding in diagnostic center consumer, O equipment of Cheers eyepiece including at least one tonometer, a device digital image formation and one biomicroscope. 4. System, in according to claim 1,
CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the ophthalmological equipment comprises vision screening equipment that allows consumers to receive eye exams at the consumer diagnostic center, vision screening equipment including at least one refractor, a phoropter and a lensometer.
5. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that a real-time connection is established by the network between the professional device and the consumer diagnostic center, the real-time connection allowing the eye care professional to see and interact with the consumer during the eye exam
3/7 consumer.
6. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the professional device is configured for the transmission of commands over the network to the consumer diagnostic center for control of ophthalmic equipment during the examination of the consumer's eye.
7. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the diagnostic center server is configured for the storage of consumer exam data and the generation of aggregated result data based on an analysis of stored exam data associated with a plurality of consumers who have received eye and eye health examinations through the consumer diagnostic center.
8. System, according to claim 7, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the aggregated outcome data includes one or more risk factors for groups of individuals with a higher risk of having a particular eye or vision disorder .
9. System, according to claim 7, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that, in response to receiving the consumer exam data, the diagnostic center server is configured to process the consumer exam data and make the exam data from processed consumer accessible to the eye care professional over the network, processed consumer exam data including preliminary assessment data generated by the diagnostic center server based on consumer exam data.
[4]
4 / Ί
10. System, according to claim 9, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the preliminary assessment data are based, at least in part, on the data associated with a previous eye examination received by the consumer.
11. System according to claim 9, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that preliminary assessment data includes an identification of one or more eye or vision disorders associated with the consumer.
12. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the diagnostic center server determines product recommendations for the consumer based on data associated with other consumers who had previously received eye and vision health checks through the consumer diagnostic center.
13. System, according to claim 1, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that at least a portion of the inputs received from the consumer through the user interface is used to generate the consumer exam data.
14. Method for providing eye and eye health examinations, FEATURED by understanding:
the generation, with a processor, of consumer examination data for a consumer eye examination at a consumer diagnostic center, the consumer diagnostic center including:
a user interface configured to receive input from and output information to the consumer;
[5]
5/7 an ophthalmic equipment for administering a plurality of tests for the consumer, the plurality of tests including at least one eye health test; and an equipment controller configured to control the operation of the ophthalmic equipment;
receiving consumer examination data from the consumer diagnostic center on a diagnostic center server and allowing consumer examination data to be accessed by an eye care professional over a network; and receiving at least a portion of the consumer examination data from the diagnostic center server on a professional device associated with the eye care professional;
displaying the consumer examination data received to the eye care professional; and the generation, with a processor, of consumer assessment data regarding the review of the eye care professional and the assessment of the consumer exam data displayed;
where an eye health report based, at least in part, on consumer assessment data is provided to the consumer via the network.
15. Method, according with the claim 10, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the center server in diagnosis be integrated with the center diagnostic in consumer. 16. Method, according with the claim 10,
CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the ophthalmic equipment comprises eye health equipment that allows
[6]
6 / Ί consumers receive comprehensive eye health exams at the consumer diagnostic center, eye health equipment including at least one tonometer, a digital imaging device and a biomicroscope.
17. Method, according to claim 10, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the ophthalmic equipment comprises a vision screening equipment that allows consumers to receive eye exams at the center
diagnosis of consumer, the equipment screening in vision including fur one less refractor one phoropter and one lensometer. 18. Method, in wake up with claim 14,
CHARACTERIZED by the fact that you still understand:
the establishment of a real-time connection over the network between the professional device and the consumer diagnostic center, the real-time connection allowing the eye care professional to see and interact with the consumer during the consumer's eye examination.
19. Method, according to claim 10, CHARACTERIZED by the fact that the professional device is configured for the transmission of commands over the network to the consumer diagnostic center for the control of ophthalmic equipment during the examination of the consumer's eye.
20. Server for the provision of services associated with eye health and vision examinations, the server FEATURED for being configured to:
receipt of consumer examination data by a
[7]
7/7 computer network for a consumer eye exam administered at a consumer diagnostic center, the consumer diagnostic center including:
a user interface configured to receive input from and output information to the consumer;
ophthalmic equipment for administering a plurality of tests for the consumer, the plurality of tests including at least one eye health test; and an equipment controller configured to control the operation of the ophthalmic equipment;
allowing access to consumer exam data
for ui τι professional in care eyepieces through an network; The transmission by less than a portion of the data in exam consumer The from the center server in
diagnosis for a professional device associated with the eye care professional; and the receipt of consumer examination data regarding the review of the eye care professional and evaluation of consumer examination data from the professional device;
where an eye health report based, at least in part, on consumer exam data is provided to the consumer via the network.

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US10916347B2|2021-02-09|Systems and methods for enabling customers to obtain vision and eye health examinations

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US20210251482A1|2021-08-19|Systems and methods for enabling customers to obtain vision and eye health examinations

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同族专利:

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公开号 | 公开日

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WO2014074157A1|2014-05-15|

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AU2013341741A1|2015-05-28|

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EP2916712A4|2016-09-07|

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EP3944255A1|2022-01-26|

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HK1214940A1|2016-08-12|

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EP2916712A1|2015-09-16|

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SG11201503546SA|2015-06-29|

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NZ707857A|2017-01-27|

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MY176642A|2020-08-19|

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JP6329165B2|2018-05-23|

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KR20150110475A|2015-10-02|

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IL238661A|2019-01-31|

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PH12015501011A1|2015-07-27|

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US20210251482A1|2021-08-19|

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JP2016503537A|2016-02-04|

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KR102032896B1|2019-10-16|

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PH12015501011B1|2015-07-27|

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IL238661D0|2015-06-30|

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CA2890564A1|2014-05-15|

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AU2013341741B2|2018-03-29|

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MX2015005687A|2016-01-12|

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CA2890564C|2018-11-27|

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法律状态:
2018-12-04| B06F| Objections, documents and/or translations needed after an examination request according [chapter 6.6 patent gazette]|

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2020-07-14| B06U| Preliminary requirement: requests with searches performed by other patent offices: procedure suspended [chapter 6.21 patent gazette]|

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2021-10-19| B350| Update of information on the portal [chapter 15.35 patent gazette]|

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2022-02-08| B06A| Patent application procedure suspended [chapter 6.1 patent gazette]|

优先权:

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申请号 | 申请日 | 专利标题

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US201261723188P| true| 2012-11-06|2012-11-06|

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PCT/US2013/038508|WO2014074157A1|2012-11-06|2013-04-26|Systems and methods for enabling customers to obtain vision and eye health examinations|

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