Contact lens holder

A contact lens holder including a lens holder and a support for positioning the lens before an optical instrument for visual inspection of the lens. An annular ring having a generally C-shaped channel cross section which defines a groove is provided for accepting and holding the periphery of a soft lens. Similarly, a U-shaped resilient fork holds the periphery of a rigid lens, for central inspection thereof. A hemispherical element is provided for holding a soft lens, and a clip device is provided for holding a rigid lens, during peripheral area inspection. The holder facilitates contact lens inspection using a biomicroscope.

The invention relates to holders for contact lenses. More particularly, it 
relates to holders for contact lenses which are attachable to a slit lamp 
biomicroscope for holding contact lenses in a stable manner, to permit 
lens examination or inspection using the biomicroscope. 
Careful examination of patients contact lenses is frequently required 
during office visits. However, this examination can be difficult without 
using specialized equipment. The condition of a contact lens, deposits on 
the lens and damage to the lens can be effectively visually inspected only 
through the use of a biomicroscope or slit lamp, a piece of equipment 
which is usually already present in almost every eye practitioner's 
office. However, to achieve a direct high power examination of a contact 
lens using a biomicroscope, the contact lens must be held in the 
practitioner's hands, or it must be held with a plastic lens forceps. Even 
under the best conditions, effective hand-held or forceps-held lens 
examination is nearly impossible due to hand movement, and the substantial 
difficulty of properly positioning the lens in front of the biomicroscope 
optics. Furthermore, the use of hands or forceps to hold the lens during 
examination necessarily covers a portion of the lens, thereby preventing 
inspection of the covered portion. To achieve a complete inspection while 
a lens is held in hand or by forceps, the lens must be repositioned at 
least once. This involves increased handling of the lens. Accordingly, 
hand-held or forceps-held inspection is not only time-consuming, but also 
requires use of substantial effort and dexterity by the practitioner. 
Moreover, the increased handling requirements of this type of inspection 
increase the risks of dropping the lens, resulting in its loss or damage. 
Furthermore, although conventional binocular microscopes are possibly 
useful for contact lens examination, they are rarely present in the 
offices of eye-care practitioners. 
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a contact lens 
holder which allows for a complete and simple examination of a contact 
lens. 
It is also an object of the invention to provide such a holder which may be 
readily attached to a biomicroscope or slit lamp of the type which are 
present in most eye-care offices. 
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a holder having a 
stable mechanical base allowing for a complete direct high power 
examination of a contact lens using readily available eye-care office 
equipment, without the need for hand or forceps holding and manipulation 
of the contact lens. 
It is yet another object of the invention to provide such a lens holder 
which is capable of safely and securely holding both rigid and soft 
contact lenses in air, without requiring that the lenses be immersed in 
water or saline solution. 
It is yet a further object of the invention to provide such a novel contact 
lens holder which is of relatively simple construction, inexpensive to 
manufacture, and which may be easily and quickly used to examine contact 
lenses. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Certain of the foregoing and related objects are readily attained with a 
contact lens holder which includes holding means for holding a contact 
lens in a manner allowing for visual inspection of the lens, and means for 
supporting the holding means in a desired position so that the lens may be 
visually inspected with an optical instrument, such as a biomicroscope. 
Preferably, the means for holding is disposed at one or both ends of a 
post which is rotatably and releasably joined to a tube- or bar-like 
bridge. The bridge may be pivotally and releasably clamped onto a support, 
such as a side rail of a biomicroscope. 
Most desirably, the post is provided in two embodiments, one intended for 
use with soft contact lenses, and a second embodiment intended for holding 
rigid lenses. For use with soft lenses, the post includes a means for 
peripherally holding the lens at one end, with the other end of the post 
having means for centrally holding a contact lens. Preferably, the device 
for peripherally holding the lens is rotatably attached to one end of the 
post and includes an annular ring having a generally C-shaped channel 
cross section which defines a groove for accepting the periphery or 
circular edge of a contact lens. The annular ring may have an outside wall 
joined to an annular base, and an inside wall joined to the base and 
radially spaced apart from, and extending parallel to, the outside wall. 
The inside and outside walls preferably both extend away from the base in 
a direction inclined towards the center of the ring. For ease of use, the 
inside wall can be made shorter than the outside wall. The ring 
advantageously has a diameter of approximately from 12.5 to 15 mm. 
At the other end of the post (i.e., at the end opposite to the post end for 
peripherally holding) means for centrally holding a contact lens may be 
mounted, which preferably includes a generally hemispherical element 
spaced apart from the post end by a stem attached pivotally and 
perpendicularly to the post. The stem is advantageously about 1/2 of the 
length of the post. 
In the embodiment of the post for use with rigid lenses, a stem is 
pivotally joined at one end of the post and supports means for 
peripherally holding the lens which includes a generally U-shaped 
resilient fork having a substantially C-shaped channel-like cross section. 
On the interior of the fork, i.e., on the surfaces which contact the lens, 
a lining of a soft material, such as soft rubber or plastic, is provided. 
At the other end of the post, means for centrally holding a lens 
preferably comprise a clip device pivotally mounted to the post and having 
two opposing arms, each of which has a free end and a fixed end, with the 
fixed ends being joined at a common pivot point. At the free end of one of 
the arms is mounted a concave tip. On the free end of the other opposing 
arm, a corresponding convex tip having a curvature matching that of the 
concave tip is provided. The tips are substantially in alignment with each 
other, and are releasably biased together by, e.g., a spring, so that a 
contact lens may be centrally held between the tips for inspection of its 
peripheral areas. The tips may be made of soft rubber, and are preferably 
of a diameter of less than 3 mm. Alternatively, a suction device may be 
attached to the post for centrally holding a lens. 
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the bridge is pivotally 
attached to the collar, so that when the collar is mounted onto a support, 
e.g., the side rail of a biomicroscope, the bridge may be reversibly 
pivoted from a storage position wherein it is generally parallel to and 
alongside of the support, to an operating or in-use position wherein the 
bridge is generally perpendicular to the support. Furthermore, it is 
advantageous for the post to be releasable from the bridge, so that 
different posts, i.e., a post for inspecting soft lenses, and a post for 
inspecting rigid lenses, may be readily interchanged on the bridge, and so 
that the bridge can be placed into its storage position, without the post 
attached thereto. It is also advantageous if the post is pivotally 
attached to the end of the bridge so that the post may be readily 
manipulated to bring the lens being inspected into a convenient inspection 
position, e.g., in line with the optics of a biomicroscope. 
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent 
from the following detailed description when taken in connection with the 
accompanying drawings, which disclose several embodiments of the 
invention. It is to be understood that the drawings are designed for the 
purpose of illustration only and are not intended as a definition of the 
limits of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Turning now in detail to 
the appended drawings, therein illustrated is a novel contact lens holder 
embodying the present invention which, as shown in FIG. 1, basically 
includes a collar 3 joined to a bridge 11 via a pivot joint 5. Collar 3 is 
clampable on a support 1, which can conveniently be the side rail of a 
conventional slit lamp or biomicroscope, via a set screw 7. A post 
assembly 2 includes a post 4 having a ring 6 pivotally attached to its one 
end 14. A stem 10 supporting a hemispherical element 8 is perpendicularly 
attached to post 4 at post end 12. Post assembly 2 is joined to bridge 11 
via joint 9, which may be a releasable swivel joint. Post assembly 2 is 
especially intended for holding soft contact lenses. 
As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, when a contact lens 30 is held by ring 6, the 
entire lens is readily available for visual inspection, except for the 
extreme perimeter of the lens, as ring 6 has a narrow cross section and 
encloses a relatively large circular open area 37. The particular 
structure of ring 6 is detailed in FIG. 3C wherein outside ring wall 31 
and inside ring wall 33 are integrally attached to an annular base 32, 
thereby forming a groove 34 for accepting the perimeter or edges of a 
contact lens. Inside wall 33 and outside wall 31 are parallel to each 
other and extend from base 32 at an angle inclined toward the center of 
ring 6. As clearly illustrated in FIG. 3D, inside wall 33 is substantially 
shorter than outside wall 31, so that a lens 30 may be easily placed into 
groove 34 of ring 6. Groove 34 may also be filled with a liquid, e.g., 
water or saline solution, for lubricating the lens and preventing its 
dehydration during inspection. A liquid 35 in groove 34 also allows ring 6 
to more securely hold the lens in place within groove 34 via capillary 
attraction of liquid 35. 
Outer wall 31 generally has a diameter of from 12.5 to 15 mm at its upper 
edge, so that most contact lenses can be accommodated within groove 34. 
However, to hold lenses having a diameter larger than 15 mm, as shown in 
FIGS. 3E and 3F, lens 30 may be placed outside of groove 34 and over 
outside wall 31. The lens adheres directly onto the frustro-conical 
surface formed by outside wall 31 via capillary attraction. 
A similar holding method is also used in an alternative embodiment of ring 
6 as illustrated in FIGS. 3G and 3H, wherein modified ring 46 has the form 
of a curved or dome-topped washer, and does not include any groove. 
Modified ring 46 has a rounded or curved upper section or shoulder 41 
forming a domed-annular ring for holding a lens 30, again via fluid 
capillary attraction forces. Ring 46 also has a relatively large central 
hole or opening 47 to permit inspection of the central areas of lens 30. 
For inspecting the periphery or edge areas of soft lenses, hemisphere 8 is 
attached to stem 10, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4A. The solid radius of 
hemisphere 8 is formed so that it approximates the radius of curvature of 
an average soft contact lens, i.e., approximately 8.7 mm. As shown in FIG. 
4B, lens 30 is centrally placed directly onto hemisphere 8 and is held in 
place through direct capillary attraction. As hemisphere 8 has a diameter 
of approximately 5 mm, it generally obscures only about 1/3 of the 
diameter of lens 30, such that the lens edges remain free and unobscured 
for complete visual inspection. 
Referring once again to FIG. 1, if inspection of rigid contact lenses is 
desire,, post assembly 2, which is designed for use with soft contact 
lenses, is removed from bridge 11 via joint 9, and is replaced with the 
post assembly of FIG. 2, which is designed for holding rigid contact 
lenses. As shown in detail in FIG. 2, the post assembly 20 for use with 
rigid lenses includes a post 25 linked at post end 24 to a support 21 
which rotatably holds a fork 26. At the other end of post 25 is a clip 
assembly 28 attached to post end 22 by a support 23. 
The construction of fork 26 is shown in detail in Fig. 5A wherein fork 26 
includes a U-shaped section 55 having a groove 54 extending along its 
inside surface. Groove 54 is formed by walls 51 and 53 which are joined to 
base 52 to form a generally C-shaped channel-like cross section. U-shaped 
element 55 is made of a resilient material, such as spring metal and is 
dimensioned so as to lightly hold a rigid lens within groove 54, as shown 
in FIG. 5B. The material and design of U-shaped element 55 are selected so 
that only a minimal amount of compression is exerted on rigid lens 50, so 
as to minimize the amount of distortion created in gas permeable and other 
thin contact lenses. Groove 54 is lined with grooved silicone or some 
other soft rubber or plastic, so that the edges of lens 50 are engaged on 
a soft material, to prevent damage to the lens. 
The clip 28 shown in FIG. 2 which is used for edge inspection of rigid 
lenses is best illustrated in FIG. 6A which shows clip 28 engaged onto a 
rigid lens 50. At the free end of support 23 is a pivot point 63 at which 
clamp arms 61 and 62 are pivotally joined. At the other ends of arms 61 
and 62 are matching convex and concave end tips, 65 and 64, respectively. 
Tips 64 and 65 have a diameter of 3 mm or less and provide surfaces for 
holding lens 50. The solid radii of tips 64 and 65 are mutually 
complimentary, and the tips are made of soft rubber or plastic, so that 
the lens may be held securely without the risk of damage. A tension spring 
67 joins arms 61 and 62, so as to bias tips 65 and 64 together with the 
minimum compression necessary to hold the lens. 
An alternative for centrally holding a rigid contact lens to allow for edge 
inspection, as illustrated in FIG. 6B, is a suction device 76 having a 
flexible bulb 71, and a nozzle-like opening 72 for engaging the lens. 
Suction device 76, which operates in the manner of, e.g., an eye dropper, 
can be attached to post end 22 by support 73, when suction device 76 is 
used in place of clamp 28 for edge viewing of rigid contact lenses. 
As many biomicroscopes already have an Hruby lens mount, the various 
holders of the invention can be adapted to fit this existing lens mount, 
as shown in FIG. 7, wherein ring 6 is attached to Hruby lens mount 75. 
Turning now in particular to the operation and use of the lens holders of 
the invention, the lens to be inspected is simply placed onto a holder 
unit, i.e., ring 6 or 46, hemisphere 8, fork 26, clip 28, or suction 
device 76, which is appropriately selected depending upon whether the lens 
is soft or rigid, and whether the center or periphery of the lens is to be 
inspected. In the case of soft lenses, saline solution is advantageously 
placed on the lens holder. By pivoting collar 3 about its support in the 
direction of arrow A, (FIG. 1), the lens may be quickly positioned in 
front of the biomicroscope to allow a direct visual inspection of the lens 
through the optics of the microscope. Further adjustments and viewing 
angles and positions can also be made by sliding collar 3 up or down on 
its support 1, by pivoting post assembly 2 with respect to bridge 11 in 
the direction of arrow C and/or by swiveling the holder unit in use, e.g., 
fork 26 about support 21 in the direction of arrow D. For storage 
purposes, bridge 11 may be pivoted, as shown by arrow B, via pivot joint 5 
so that it rests alongside support 1, and post assembly 2 or 20 removed 
from bridge 11 via joint 9. 
Thus, while only several embodiments of the present invention have been 
shown and described, it will be obvious that many changes and 
modifications may be made thereunto, without departing from the spirit and 
scope of the invention.