Mold for intraocular lens

Cross-reference of related applications None. Federal-sponsored research or development statement Not applicable. Addendum Not applicable.

Background of the invention 1. Field of invention The present invention relates generally to molds, especially to molds for multi-stage intraocular lenses.

2. Related technology U.S. Pat. No. 6,488,708Bl ('708 patent), issued December 3, 2002, discloses a multi-stage intraocular lens. Prior to the present invention disclosed in the '708 patent, there were only one-stage lenses with haptics extending from the lens to the muscle tissue. The '708 patent discloses a laminated multi-stage lens in which a tactile portion crosses between the lenses and connects the lenses.

<p> While this is a conceptually good idea, improvements in the manufacture of such intraocular lenses, such as providing molds and methods for manufacturing the multistage lenses, are still needed in the art. ing.</p>

<p>Outline of the invention The present invention has been made in view of the above problems. The present invention is a mold and molding method for manufacturing a multi-stage intraocular lens. Specifically, the mold has a core that includes a lens cavity, a tactile cavity, and a gate that is in direct fluid communication with one or more of the above cavities. In addition, the mold is provided with a gasket that surrounds the core.</p><p> During use, the molding material flows into the cavity through the gate. As the silicone flows into the cavity, a gasket creates a vacuum around the core. Due to this vacuum, the air trapped in the mold core is discharged, and the molding material is easily sucked into the mold core.</p>

Hereinafter, further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein by reference and are a part thereof, show embodiments of the present invention, and explain the principles of the present invention together with explanations thereof.

In the accompanying drawings in which similar reference numerals indicate similar elements, FIG. 1 shows a multi-stage intraocular lens manufactured by the present invention, outlined at 10. Although the lens 10 is shown to include a pair of lenses, a multi-stage lens having more than two lenses can also be manufactured by the method according to the present invention. The multi-stage lens 10 includes a front lens 12 and a rear lens 14 connected by a first tactile portion 16, a second tactile portion 18, and a third tactile portion 20. The multi-stage lens 10 is preferably made of silicone. The tactile portions 16, 18 and 20 are flexible, which allows the lenses 12 and 14 to be adjusted relative to each other. The tactile portions 16, 18 and 20 can connect the lenses 12 and 14 in the peripheral portion 22 or the internal region 24 thereof.

In FIG. 2, the mold outlined in 26 has a mold core 28, a material inflow gate 30, and a gasket 32. The mold core 28 has a pair of lens cavities 34 and 36 that communicate with each other via tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42. The gasket 32 surrounds the mold core 28 including the lens cavities 34 and 36 and the tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42. The material inflow gate 30 communicates with any one or more of the cavities in the mold core 28. As shown in FIG. 3A, the material inflow gate 30 communicates with one mold core cavity, such as one of the lens cavities 34 and 36, and is separated from the tactile cavities 38, 40, and 42. Is preferable. The material inflow gate 30 is capable of communicating with a large number of mold core cavities, including tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42. For example, as shown in FIG. 3B, the material inflow gate 30 communicates with 38, which is one of the tactile cavity, and 36, which is a lens cavity 36.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5A and 5B, the mold 26 can be formed by a pair of blocks 44 and 46 that enclose the central block 48. FIG. 4 shows a side view of a mold core 28 having a central block 48 arranged between a pair of blocks 44 and 46. FIG. 5A shows the inside of the block 44 on one side of the mold 26, and FIG. 5B shows the inside of the block 46 on the opposite side of the mold 26 together with the central block 48. The central block is preferably connected to a handle 50 extending through blocks 44 and 46. The handle 50 includes an offset pin 52 that ensures proper installation of the central block 48 in the mold 26, which prevents it from being inserted backwards or upside down.

These views of the mold 26 in FIGS. 4 and 5A and 5B identify the mold core 28 in which the outer surfaces of the lens cavities 34 and 36 are formed as recesses 54 and 56 in a pair of blocks 44 and 46, respectively. The embodiment of the above is shown. The inner surfaces of the lens cavities 34 and 36 are enclosed by facing surfaces 58 and 60 of the central mold 48. Similarly, the inner surfaces of the tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42 are formed by the tactile recesses 62, 64 and 66 in the blocks 44 and 46, and these inner surfaces are enclosed by the outer peripheral 68 of the central mold. ing. The tactile recesses 62, 64 and 66 have complementary recesses 70 and 70'in blocks 44 and 46, respectively. Thus, the tactile recesses 62, 64 and 66 of each block 44 and 46 are formed from a pair of partial tactile recesses (ie, complementary recesses 70 and 70') in blocks 44 and 46. .. The interface between the complementary recesses 70 and 70'is identical in number, position and shape to reduce the possibility of burrs and / or breaks in the tactile portions 16, 18 and 20 during the molding process. Should. The blocks 44 and 46 are snugly fitted together on their complementary surfaces 72 and 72'via a hardware element 74 that fastens the blocks 44 and 46 together. In particular, as shown in FIG. 4, the material inflow gate 30 is formed by the groove 76 of one block 44.

6A and 6B show partial cross-sectional views of the mold core 28 according to FIGS. 3A and 3B, respectively. The shapes of the tactile portions 16, 18 and 20 and the shapes of their connections to the lenses 12 and 14 can be changed by using different mold shapes. For example, the tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42 may communicate with the peripheral edge 78 of the lens cavity 34 or the internal region 80 of the lens cavity 36. Similarly, the tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42 may have an accordion-like cross-sectional shape 82.

In practice, the pair of blocks 44 and 46 are fixed with the central block 48 enclosed in between. The molding material 84 is allowed to flow through the gate 30 into one or more of the mold core cavities. Then, a vacuum is applied to the mold core 28 by the gasket 42. By this vacuum, air is discharged from the mold core cavity, and the molding material 34 easily flows into all the mold core cavities of the mold core 28.

In this preferred embodiment, the molding material 84 is silicone, which first flows from the gate 30 to 34 in one lens cavity and then through the tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42 to the other lens cavity. Flow to 36. In the modified example, the lens 86 (see FIG. 6B) may be made of different materials and placed in one or both of the lens cavities 34 and 36. The lens 86 will at least partially block one or both of the lens cavities 34 and 36, allowing the molding material to flow around a portion of the lens 86. For example, the lens 86 may have mounting grooves or orifices in which the molding material is secured within the lens 86. Other such lens materials can be polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), glass and acrylic resin. In general, the molding material may be any kind of flexible transparent material such as silicone or hydrogel. Other usable materials include hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and polydimethylsiloxane.

In view of the above, it is understood that some of the advantages of the present invention will be realized and achieved. The above embodiments optimally describe the principles of the invention and its practical applications, whereby those skilled in the art will appreciate the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications, depending on the particular application considered. It has been selected and described so that it can be used to the fullest extent.

Since the structures and methods described and described herein can be modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the present invention, all matters contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings are all possible. , Interpreted as an example, not a limitation. For example, a multi-stage lens having three laminated lenses separated by three tactile portions can also be manufactured by the present invention. In such a case, the gate 30 can be arranged so as to have direct fluid communication with one lens cavity 34. Then, the material flows into the lens cavity 34 through the gate 30. When vacuum is applied by the gasket 32, the material flows through the tactile cavities 38, 40 and 42 into the connected lens cavities. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above exemplary embodiments, but is defined only in accordance with the following appended claims and their equivalents.

<figref num="1">Perspective view of the multi-stage lens manufactured by the present invention</figref><figref num="2">Perspective view of mold, mold core, material gate and gasket according to the present invention</figref><figref num="3A">Top view of the mold core showing the arrangement of the gates</figref><figref num="3B">Top view of the mold core showing the arrangement of the gates</figref><figref num="4">Side view of mold core</figref><figref num="5A">Perspective view of the mold core part</figref><figref num="5B">Perspective view of the mold core part</figref><figref num="6A">It is a partial cross-sectional view of the mold core shown in FIG. 3A.</figref><figref num="6B">It is a partial cross-sectional view of the mold core shown in FIG. 3B.</figref>