Abstract:
A contact lens placement instrument which places a contact lens on the eye and, using a puff of air releases the lens or using suction removes the lens from the eye, both procedures performed with a corrective lens or a magnifying mirror which contain lighting illuminating the eye.

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention is directed to an instrument for placing and removing a contact lens on an eye, most effective in the release of the contact lens once it has been seated on the eyeball.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Contact lenses are most commonly placed on the eye by first placing the outer curvature of a contact lens on a finger tip. The contact lens is then directed towards and seated against the eyeball where a liquid seal is formed between the eyeball and lens. The finger is removed from the lens and the lens remains seated on the eye. The contact lens frequently won&#39;t release and remains on the finger, requiring another attempt at installation of the contact lens. Removal of the contact lens from the eye is also accomplished with the fingers, often requiring several attempts. Placement and removal of contact lens are both performed using fingers, which brings in the question of how sanitary the fingers are.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    The present intention is directed towards an instrument which is used to carry a contact lens to a person&#39;s eye and releasing the lens from the instrument with a puff of air once the lens has been seated on the eyeball. The invention is applicable to placing a hard contact lens, but is most effective for placement of a soft contact ones. The invention also may be used to remove a contact lens from the eye by applying a vacuum to the seated lens.  
           [0004]    The contact lens placement instrument is comprised of a cylindrical tube approximately 80-100 mm in length. The outside diameter of the tube is 1-1.5 mm depending upon the material used. The interior is hollow and 1 mm in diameter. The material may be plastic or metal, such as stainless steel. One end of the tube contains a contact lens holder comprised of a tissue compatible material, such a silicone, which has an end shaped to fit the outside curvature of the contact lens. The lens contacting portion is a cylindrical conical area with a diameter of 4-6 mm and has a central hole connected to the hollow tube. A softer silicone is desirable, but not necessarily. The last 20 mm of the other end of the tube enlarges into six mm in diameter is fitted to a hollow rubber air bulb, the center of the air bulb connecting to the hollow center of the tube.  
           [0005]    The outer curvature of the contact lens is placed on the conical end of the lens holder and the lens is then carried to the eyeball and seated. Once the lens is seated the air bulb is squeezed as the instrument is removed from the eye. The puff of air effectively disengages the instrument from the contact lens and the lens is left fitted to the eye.  
           [0006]    In another embodiment of the invention the last 20-30 mm of the tube on the lens holder end is 90° to the body of the tube. This bend allows the air bulb to be out of the line of vision which allows a clearer view of the eye. In another embodiment the lens holder is removable. There is a female cavity in the lens holder which receives the end of the hollow tube. The hollow tube is shaped to fit the female cavity. The interior of the female cavity is bulbous, or larger in diameter than its opening. The hollow tube end is shaped to match the female cavity. This provides a locking of the lens holder on the end of the hollow tube. The lens holder is removable which allows it to be replaced, as needed, or it can be disposable with every use. Disposable is desirable if the contact lens replacement tool is used on multiple patients.  
           [0007]    In another embodiment the lens holder conical area is extended into a larger cone which is contoured to fit the outer curvature of the contact lens. This extension is a porous foam, preferably made from silicone. The object of the extension is to aid in seating the lens to surface of the eye with a material which won&#39;t adhere to the contact lens during the removal process of the lens placement after lens placement.  
           [0008]    Mounted to the bulb end of the hollow tube are female slots for receiving a removable eyeglass lens holder, the holder having appropriately sized male members to removably fit into the female slots. The other end of the eyeglass holder has a clip mechanism to hold the eyeglass lens. The lens is positioned relative to the eye similarly to a pair of glasses but of sufficient distance from the eye to allow for the contact placement instrument. In the embodiment with the curved hollow tube the eyeglass lens would be in the axial direction of the lens holder portion of the hollow tube. The lens would be 20-30 mm from the bend area of the hollow tube. When a person uses the contact lens installing instrument to install the lens they can, by using a mirror, focus upon their eye during lens installation which greatly facilitates the contact lens placement. This is especially useful for people who have poor near vision.  
           [0009]    Another embodiment of invention is a magnifying mirror, the same size as the eyeglass lens, placed in the same position as the lens. The mirror allows a person to install contact lenses when mirrors are not available. This use of a mirror allows a person to have a hand free to pull the lower eyelid down during the contact lens installation. The mirror would have the necessary corrective magnification for the person using it. In another embodiment of the corrective lens and the mirror a light means is attached with a power source for illumination of the eye during the installation of the contact lens. Using the magnifying mirror the contact lens could be placed in the dark.  
           [0010]    In another embodiment the hollow tube is constructed from the plastic containing a 10 gauge solid copper wire within its hollow center which allows the tube to be bent and having enough rigidity to hold the new shape.  
           [0011]    The use of the contact lens placement instrument is as follows. The outer curvature of the contact lenses is placed on the lens holder and carried to the eye where it is seated. Once the lens is seated the air bulb is squeezed producing a puff of air to the lens which releases the contact lens from the contact lens placement instrument. As this is done the contact lens placement instrument is pulled away from the eye. The puff of air effectively releases the contact lens. The contact lens placement instrument also has the advantage of providing a method of placing a contact lens without placing a finger in the eye, making the process more sanitary. The invention has the ability of removing the contact lens from the eye without the use of fingers in the eye. The air bulb is squeezed prior to placing the lens holder against the installed contact lens. The release of the air bulb produces a vacuum to the lens which allows its removal. This is most effective when the lens holder is applied near the edge of the lens and the lens is removed with a motion away and towards the center of the lens. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]    [0012]FIG. 1 is a view of the contact lens placement instrument with selected views of the lens holder;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 2 is another embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 3 is another embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 4 is a view of the removable attachment;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 5 is another embodiment of the invention; and  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 6 is another embodiment of the lens holder. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0018]    Referring to FIGS. 1, 2,  3 , and  4  the contact lens placement instrument is comprised of a lens holder  2  and  32 . The lens holder  2  and  32  is comprised of a tissue compatible silicone. The lens holder  2  and  32  has a conical surface  7 A which is curved from lip to lip  7 B to match the outer curvature  1 B of a contact lens  1 A. The conical surface  7  is 2-4 mm in diameter. The side walls  7 C of the lens holder  2  taper from the conical lip  7 B away from the conical surface  7 A and converge to enclose a hollow tube  4  as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and  3 . A preferred embodiment of the side wall  7 C curvature is shown in FIG. 1 wherein the side wall  7 C flares out from the conical lip  7 B, like a skirt, then changes direction  7 D and tapers in. This makes the conical lip  7 B less acute making the lip  7 B less likely to injure the eyeball. There is a hollow longitudinal channel running in the center of the lens holder  2  running in a longitudinal axial direction communicating from the surface  7 A of the lens holder  2  to the opposite end.  
         [0019]    A hollow tube  4  approximately 2 mm.in diameter with a 1 mm hollow interior  7 G is connected to the lens holder  2 . The hollow tube  4  is in the same axial direction as the lens holder  2  at its point of attachment. The hollow interior  7 G of the tube  4  connects with the hollow longitudinal channel  7 F of the lens holder  2 . In one embodiment as shown in FIG. 2 the hollow tube  4  extends in a straight axial direction approximately 80 mm where it enlarges into a hollow fitting  5  with an outer diameter of 6 mm and a length of 20 mm. In FIGS. 1, 2, and  3  a 30 mm air bulb  6 A, with a 6 mm diameter open end  6 B, is fitted over the fitting  5 . The contact lens placement instrument is used to insert a contact lens  1 A on the surface of the eyeball and then effectively releases the contact lens  1 A when it is in place. The contact lens placement instrument is grasped with one hand by the air bulb  6 A. The wet contact lens  1 A is mounted by its outside curvature surface  1 B to the conical surface  7 A of the lens holder  2 . A finger from the opposite hand pulls the lower eyelid downwards and the contact lens  1 A is inserted on the front of the eyeball. Once a contact lens  1 A is securely seated the contact lens placement instrument is removed from the eye as the air bulb  6 A is squeezed. A puff of air travels through the hollow tube  4  and hollow lens holder  2  and exits the hole  7 F in the conical cup  7 A and hits the outer surface  1 B of the contact lens  1 A and releases the contact lens  1 A.  
         [0020]    In FIGS. 1, 3, and  5  another preferred embodiment is shown where the hollow tube  4  has a 90° bend  4 B in it. The hollow tube  4  extends approximately 20-30 mm from the lens holder  2  and makes the right angle bend  4 B wherein the hollow tube  4  extends 60 mm where it ends in the fitting  5  for the air bulb  6 A. The hollow tube  4  can be made from plastic or metal, such as stainless steel. The hollow tube  4  can be a combination of materials.  
         [0021]    In FIG. 5A a preferred embodiment of the lens holder is removable which allows its removal for sterilization or replacement, especially if the lens holder is disposable. The lens holder  2  has an interior bulbous female cavity which faces the hollow tube  4 . The end of the hollow tube is flared  31  or bulbous and sized to fit into the female fitting  32  of the lens holder  2 . Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4 another preferred embodiment has a corrective eyeglass sized lens  12 , or magnifying mirror  12 , is mounted to the contact lens positioning instrument allowing the eye to be clearly viewed during the installation of the contact lens  1 A. The angled hollow tube  4  is desirable because the corrective lens  12  or mirror  12  can be placed 10-20 mm from the hollow tube  4  and in the axial direction of the lens holder  2  portion of the hollow tube  4 . The horizontal plane of the magnifying lens  12  is at a right angle to the longitudinal axis of lens holder  2  portion of the hollow tube  41 . With the lens positioned in this area during the installation of the contact lens  1 A the eye can be clearly viewed. A magnifying mirror  12  can be mounted in the same position eliminating the need for a hand held or wall mounted mirror.  
         [0022]    A preferred embodiment for mounting the mirror  12  or lens  12  is shown figures FIGS. 3 and 4. A lens holder  11  is used with a gripping means  17  at one end for attaching the mirror  12  or lens  12 . The other end of the lens holder  11  has removable mount  13 . The removal mount  13  is comprised of a female part  15  and is mounted to the tube end of the fitting  5 . In FIG. 4 the female receptacle  15 , mounted to the hollow tube  4  side of the fitting  5 , removably receives matching male receptacles  16  which are connected to the end of the lens holder  11 . The lens holder  11  extends 20 mm away from the hollow tube  4  then turns and follows the direction of the hollow tube  4  where it ends with a gripping means  17  to hold the lens  12  or mirror  12 .  
         [0023]    In another embodiment of the invention the magnifying mirror  12  or lens  12  contains a lighting means for illuminating the eye. The lighting means is particularly useful for placing the contact lens  1 A in poor lighting or in the dark. The lighting means is comprised of a low energy consuming LED light which would only require a miniature battery, such as a watch battery.  
         [0024]    Another embodiment of the contact lens placement instrument is shown in FIG. 6 wherein a porous foam extension  9  of the curved portion  7 A of the lens holder  1 A is extended following the same curvature as the contact lens to slightly less than the diameter of the contact lens  1 A, ideally a biocompatible material, such as silicone. The foam portion  9  is helpful in seating the contact lens  1 A on the eyeball. Another use of the contact lens placement instrument is the removal of the contact lens  1 A without placing the fingers in the eyes. This is accomplished by squeezing the air bulb  6 A prior to placing the contact lens holder  2  on the seated contact lens  1 A surface and releasing the air bulb  6 A which provides a vacuum effective enough to remove the lens  1 A from the eye. This is most effective if the seated contact lens  1 A is engaged near its periphery and removing in a motion crossing the eye.  
         [0025]    The invention has been described in several embodiments, but is intended to include variations of what has been described. The invention uses a gas, such as air, to place and release a contact lens. The invention eliminates the use of fingers in the eye.