Cuvette for lens inspection

Container for lens inspection

<p>11. . . Hollow area</p><p>12. . . axis</p><p>13. . . Inspection glass</p><p>14. . . Inspection slot</p><p>15. . . Insertion channel</p><p>16. . . Opening</p><p>17. . . axis</p><p>18. . . Stoppers</p><p>19. . . Downside</p><p>20. . . high</p><p>twenty two. . . Remove slot</p><p>twenty three. . . Transition zone</p><p>twenty four. . . lens</p><p>30. . . Contact lens</p><p>31. . . Hollow area</p><p>32. . . axis</p><p>33. . . Inspection glass</p><p>34. . . Inspection slot</p><p>35. . . Insertion channel</p><p>36. . . Opening</p><p>37. . . axis</p><p>38. . . Clamping device</p><p>39. . . Edge green</p><p>40. . . Downside</p><p>41. . . Remove slot</p><p>42. . . lens</p>

The present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box of the present invention at the inspection position;

Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box of Figure 1 in the operating position;

Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box at the inspection position according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 4 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box of Figure 3 in an operating position;

Figure 5 shows a perspective view of the container box of Figure 3; and

Fig. 6 shows another perspective view of the container box of Fig. 3.

[Technical Field to which the Invention belongs]

The present invention relates to a container box for ophthalmic lenses to inspect ophthalmic lenses using a refraction system. The container includes a hollow area filled with liquid, and when the container box is in the inspection position, the container box runs along the The optical axis of the refraction system extends, and a viewing glass limits its range above the viewing glass for optical inspection. Under the viewing glass, there is a base, especially an inspection slot, for accommodating the ophthalmic lens. The present invention particularly relates to a container box used for optometry of contact lenses, so the following mainly refers to contact lenses, but it is not intended to cause any limitation.

[Prior Art]

It is known that in the automated production process, we use reusable molds to prepare hard and soft contact lenses, which can produce contact lenses that can be worn only once and replaced with new lenses. However, in order to ensure stable quality, the finished contact lens must undergo optometry.

However, soft ophthalmic lenses are particularly difficult to process with mechanical devices, and it is known that in order to perform refraction, these lenses must be placed in a sink. We found that when the contact lens is inserted into the sink, its concave surface will always face upwards. This feature can be used in optometry, so we provide the aforementioned type of container box, which contains individual contact lenses. The entire container box or the part along the optical axis of the refraction system is made of light-transmitting material and placed on the refraction path, so that the image of the contact lens can be recorded with a suitable camera. In order to form this optometry condition, on the one hand, it is necessary to ensure that the liquid on the optical path and the inspection glass and the container wall are kept clean; on the other hand, the free boundary surface of the liquid cannot affect the image. Therefore, the lower side of the inspection glass must be immersed in the liquid , And there can be no air bubbles between the liquid and the inspection glass. In the known container box, the contact lens is inserted into a hollow area filled with liquid, and is closed by a lid that also forms the inspection glass. In the process of inserting the lens into the container box and closing the container box while avoiding the intrusion of gas, the requirements for the mentioned operating equipment are obviously very high.

[Summary of the invention]

The purpose of the present invention is to configure a container box of the aforementioned type so that the insertion process of the ophthalmic lens can be simplified. The special purpose is to ensure that the inspection glass is always in contact with the liquid without air bubbles at least during the inspection, so as to carry out no interference. The optometry procedure.

According to the present invention, the above-mentioned object can be achieved because at least one insertion channel between the inspection glass and the inspection groove opens into the hollow area, and the ophthalmic lens can be inserted into the hollow area through the insertion opening outside the insertion channel. The contact lens can be inserted into the hollow area through the insertion channel without affecting the liquid under the inspection glass. It is only necessary to ensure that the liquid height is maintained above the lower side of the inspection glass at the inspection position. This can be appropriately selected It is achieved by inserting into the position of the insertion opening of the channel.

It is very convenient if the insertion opening of the insertion channel can be tightly closed. The advantage is that when the container box is pushed to the individual inspection station of the inspection device, it can prevent the liquid from leaking or the contact lens from falling. Then the container box can also be turned to any desired position.

The insertion channel has an axis, which can open into the hollow area, so that the axis of the insertion channel and the axis of the hollow area form an angle between 0° and 90°. In order to insert or remove the ophthalmic lens, the container box can be turned to the operating position so that the insertion opening of the insertion channel faces upward, which facilitates the use of the automatic holder. These holders usually include a vacuum clamp that is preferably able to move linearly and clamp the concave surface of the contact lens. In this regard, especially the axis of the insertion channel extends vertically when in the operating position. The effect is that the contact lens is When the container box is inside, the concave surface faces upwards to ensure that the vacuum clamp can clamp it.

In principle, it is convenient if the axis of the hollow area extends vertically during the inspection position, which ensures that the contact lens always has a certain position in the inspection groove, that is, the concave surface is upward, so it is quite easy to use electronic image processing.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the insertion channel is opened to the inside of the hollow area at an angle between 45° and 90°, especially 90°, between its axis and the axis of the hollow area, and the insertion channel and the hollow area The volume and liquid volume of the zone and the position of the inspection glass are selected to be in the inspection position, and the lower side of the inspection glass is at or lower than the height of the liquid. In order to insert the contact lens, the container box can be rotated with the insertion opening facing upward. After insertion, the opening is closed and the container box is turned back to the inspection position. After this, the liquid will move, and the liquid and the viewing glass can be in contact with no bubbles by selecting the position of the viewing glass and its underside. However, the container box must be closed here.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the insertion channel opens to the interior of the hollow area at an angle between 30° and 60°, especially 45°, between its axis and the axis of the hollow area, and the insertion channel The edge of the insertion opening is located above the lower side of the inspection glass when in the inspection position. This advantage lies in that there is no need to close the insertion channel, and no bubble contact can be achieved between the liquid and the inspection glass.

In principle, it is quite convenient to arrange a space as a gastrap in the area around the inspection glass, and the upper green wall is located above the lower side of the inspection glass when it is at the inspection position. In this way, the formation of bubbles between the inspection glass and the liquid can always be reliably avoided, and if the container box is opened, there is no need for a condensing valve.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, there is a removal slot located in the extension of the insertion channel on the other side of the interior of the hollow area, wherein when in the operating position, the ophthalmic lens in the removal slot is ready take out. This advantage is that when the contact lens is also in the operating position, it has a certain position and can be firmly clamped by the holder. The removal groove also provides reliable engagement and guidance of the contact lens and the holder to avoid damage. Of course, when the contact lens is inserted into the container box, it can also be firmly placed in the removal slot, and whether the direction is determined is no longer so important.

The removal groove can be formed by grooving the side edge wall of the hollow area. Here, the inspection tank can be extended into the transfer storage tank, and there is generally no transition zone, even part of it extends from the removal tank. If the distance between the removal slot and the inspection slot is large, it is convenient to configure a transition zone so that the ophthalmic lens can move from one of the inspection positions to the operating position or from the operating position to the inspection position. The slot slides into the other slots. This ensures that the contact lens can be safely moved inside the container box, and the contact lens is always located in the inspection slot when in the inspection position, and always in the removal slot when in the operating position.

In principle, the inspection tank can be an integral part of the optical lens, and the inspection glass can also be used as an optical lens. In this way, a small optical structure can be achieved as a whole.

In a contact lens inspection method of an automated production process (for example, in an inspection module), the use of the container box of the present invention is particularly advantageous. It is obvious that there are several advantageous variants of this method.

[Implementation mode]

The container box shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 has a hollow area 11 filled with liquid such as water. The hollow area 11 extends along an axis 12, which coincides with the optical axis of the refraction system (not shown) in the inspection position shown in FIG. 13 defines its scope, and the area below the hollow area forms an inspection slot 14, which is used as an inspection location to accommodate contact lenses (not shown).

An insertion channel 15 with an outer opening 16 opens into the hollow area 11 so that contact lenses can be inserted into the hollow area 11 through the opening. The insertion channel generally extends linearly along an axis 17 perpendicular to the axis 12 of the hollow area 11. The term "straight line" herein means that a linearly moving clamping device can be clamped into the hollow area 11 through the channel. In the container box operating position shown in Fig. 2, the shaft 17 extends vertically so that the contact lens can be inserted and taken out from above. After the contact lens is inserted, a stopper 18 is used to seal the insertion opening 16 and the container box is turned to the inspection position shown in FIG. 1 so that no liquid will leak out. Therefore, it must be rotated by 90° in this embodiment.

On the one hand, the position of the lower side 19 of the inspection glass 13 and on the other hand, the remaining volume size and liquid volume after the stopper is installed in the insertion channel are selected so that the liquid height 20 is located in the inspection position. The bottom side 19 is above. An additional space 21 can be provided in the area of the inspection glass 13 as a condensing valve, so that no bubble contact can be achieved between the inspection glass and the liquid.

On the other side of the opening in the hollow area, there is a removal slot 22 extending from the insertion channel along the shaft 17, and the removal slot is connected to the inspection slot 14 through a transition zone 23. In this way, Then when the container box rotates from the inspection position to the operation position, the contact lens will slide from the inspection slot into the operation slot, and vice versa. The grooves 14, 22 can be connected to each other through a tangentially extending surface. Therefore, the contact lens is also fixed in the groove 22 in the operating position, so that the lens can be clamped firmly, for example, with a vacuum clamp.

The container box shown in FIGS. 3 to 6 also has a hollow area 31 filled with liquid, such as water. The hollow area extends along an axis 32, which coincides with the optical axis of the refraction system (not shown) in the inspection position shown in FIG. Define its scope. An inspection slot 34 is constructed in the lower area of the hollow area, which is used as an inspection location for accommodating the contact lens 30 (not shown).

An insertion channel 35 with an outer opening 36 opens into the hollow area 31 so that the contact lens 30 can be inserted into the hollow area 31 through the opening. The insertion channel is substantially along the axis 32 of the hollow region 31 at about 45 degrees. One axis 37 of the "extends linearly. The term "straight" also refers to the linear movement of the clamping device which can be clamped into the hollow area 31 through the channel. In principle, a holder of the oblique insertion type can be used herein to insert and remove the lens from the slot 34.

However, in this article, rotating the container box between the inspection position and the operating position in FIG. 3 is also quite advantageous. In the container box operating position shown in FIG. 4, the shaft 37 of the insertion channel extends vertically to make the invisible The glasses can be inserted and taken out from above using a clamping device 38 that can move up and down. Therefore, in this embodiment, they must be rotated by 45°.

The outer removal opening 36 and its lower edge 39 are specially configured so that the shaft 32 is in the inspection position that extends substantially vertically, and the edge 39 is located above the lower side 40 of the inspection glass 33. This effect lies in the lower side. Being immersed in the liquid, there is no bubble contact between the liquid and the viewing glass, so the optometry system can be reliably prevented from being affected by the free boundary surface or the bubbles on the viewing glass. In addition, in this embodiment, it is no longer necessary to close the container box and rotate it to the inspection position. The container box can be easily moved from the operating position of FIG. 4 to the inspection position of FIG. 3 without any liquid leakage. When the container box is turned to the operating position, the height of the liquid in the insertion channel 35 will drop to the edge 39 , The contact lens can be inserted or removed at this time. When rotating to the inspection position, the liquid in the insertion channel will rise to the edge 39 but will not overflow, and the lower side of the inspection glass remains below the liquid height.

Therefore, in terms of taking out or inserting contact lenses from the container box, the automatic inspection procedure can be simplified to a considerable extent. It is convenient if the vertical distance between the upper line 39 of the opening and the lower side 40 of the viewing glass can be sufficiently designed to prevent liquid leakage when the container box is moved. Depending on the type of movement, a distance of 5mm to 20mm is sufficient.

On the other side of the opening in the hollow area, a removal groove 41 extends from the insertion channel 35 along the shaft 37. The removal tank does not generally need to be connected to the inspection tank 34 through the transition zone, and part of it is formed by the latter. In this way, when the container box is rotated from the inspection position to the operating position, the invisible The glasses will slide from the inspection slot into the operation slot, and vice versa. The contact lens is fixed in the groove 41 when in the operating position, so that the lens can be firmly clamped by the vacuum clamp 38.

In the two embodiments, the inspection grooves 14, 34 are made into the optical lens 24, 42 as a component, and the inspection glass 13, 33 has excellent optical properties and can be designed as an optical lens.

In an automated production process, the above-mentioned container box can be advantageously used in the inspection of contact lenses. In the inspection process or the inspection module of the automated production process, since the contact lens inspection is performed in liquid, the container box is first filled with the inspection liquid (such as water) at the filling station. Next, the contact lens is loaded in the loading and unloading table. In the case where the container box has a closing stop (for example, see Figures 1 and 2), then the container box is then closed at a closing station. This is where the container box does not have a closing stop (for example, see Figure 3). And 4) can be omitted. Then the container box is tilted or turned to the inspection position (for example, rotated 90° or 45°). Then, the container box containing the contact lens is sent to the inspection station. The lens can be inspected regardless of whether the container box is in a static position or (continuously) passing the inspection table. When the inspection of the contact lens is completed, the container box is moved away from the inspection table, and then the container box is rotated (backward) or tilted (backward) again. If a container box with a closing stop is used, the container box can be opened at this time (this can be omitted when the container box does not have a closing stop). Finally, the contact lens can be taken out, and the container box can be pushed back, and the above-mentioned cycle can be restarted.

Before the container box is filled with the test liquid, a cleaning step can be optionally provided, wherein the container box is cleaned either after each cycle or after several cycles before being refilled with the liquid. Similarly, the steps of cleaning, filling, loading, removing and closing the stopper of the contact lens can also be selected in a discontinuous area, so that multiple procedures (such as loading) can be completed at the same time. After the container box is tilted, the container box can be sent to a continuous conveying system, for example, it can be conveyed along a specific length first, so that the inspection liquid in the container box can move, and the lens to be inspected can be secure. It is firmly fixed to the inspection position in the container box. Then, a storage area can be provided to store a container box or multiple container boxes from the delivery system after the contact lens has been tested. Then, the container box is rotated back or tilted back, and sent back from the continuous conveying system to a certain discontinuous area. When the container box has been opened (or tilted back), if necessary, for example, if multiple container boxes are placed on a rack and different contact lenses are located in these container boxes (such as contact lenses with different correction values, After all, they can be prepared at the same time), the liquid can be tested by light extraction, and then the classification procedure can be carried out. When removing the contact lens, in the case of a container box with a closure stopper, the return of the closure stopper must be reconfigured so that it can be used again in a subsequent cycle.

Dividing into a continuous area and a discontinuous area can especially save time, and can also complete multiple operating procedures (such as loading) at the same time. The scope of these inspection stations (such as the number of holders used for loading and unloading) must match the interface of each module (such as the production module for transporting the lenses to be inspected, or the packaging module for distributing the inspected lenses).

In the inspection module itself, in order to save time, the container box can be transported from the discontinuous area to the continuous conveying system by lateral conveying (for example, supplemented by a slider), thus shortening the path (and time). The transportation between the inspection stations in the discontinuous zone can be completed with the help of a conveyor belt. When the required number of containers is ready, the lateral conveying program can be used to send to the continuous conveying system. During the cycle of the system, the inspection head does not need to be fixed/installed in the inspection area, and the inspection head (such as the inspection head equipped with a camera) does not need to be moved, and the container boxes can be continuously transported in the inspection area. Before the inspection table, a stable zone with a fixed conveying speed (see above) can be configured, so that the lens can be correctly seated in the inspection position in the container box. An important point of this article is that there is no lateral acceleration that may make it difficult to position the lens correctly. In order to prevent the continuous redemption conveying system from stopping when it is blocked when it is opened (the container box with the closing stopper), a storage area (see above) can be provided to accommodate the container box after inspection and the contact lens after inspection. The storage capacity can correspond to the size of the stable zone. In addition, after inspection, the storage area may travel at a speed slightly higher than the conveying speed.

As mentioned above, especially in the case that the container box does not have a closing stopper, multiple steps (such as the suction, opening and closing of the container box, and the complete operation of the closing stopper) can be omitted, for example It can also be combined with individual steps (such as the cleaning and filling of the container box), or completely omitted (such as suction).

Schematic description

The present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box of the present invention at the inspection position;

Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box of Figure 1 in the operating position;

Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box at the inspection position according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 4 shows a cross-sectional view of the container box of Figure 3 in an operating position;

Figure 5 shows a perspective view of the container box of Figure 3; and

Fig. 6 shows another perspective view of the container box of Fig. 3.

Symbol description of main components

11. . . Hollow area

12. . . axis

13. . . Inspection glass

14. . . Inspection slot

15. . . Insertion channel

16. . . Opening

17. . . axis

18. . . Stoppers

19. . . Downside

20. . . high

twenty two. . . Remove slot

twenty three. . . Transition zone

twenty four. . . lens

30. . . Contact lens

31. . . Hollow area

32. . . axis

33. . . Inspection glass

34. . . Inspection slot

35. . . Insertion channel

36. . . Opening

37. . . axis

38. . . Clamping device

39. . . Edge green

40. . . Downside

41. . . Remove slot

42. . . lens