Patent ID: 7864335

Claim:
A Fourier domain OCT tomographic image processing method, comprising the steps of: emitting a light beam within a predetermined wavelength band; dividing the emitted light beam in to a measuring light beam and a reference light beam; combining reflected light beams, which are the measuring light beam reflected at various depth positions within a measurement target, with the reference light beam; detecting interference light beams, formed by combining the reflected light beams and the reference light beam, as interference signals; and generating a tomographic image from the interference signals; wherein: the detected interference signals are divided into different wavelength bands, to generate a plurality of divided interference signals; each of the plurality of divided interference signals is analyzed to obtain a plurality of pieces of tomographic data regarding each depth position of the measurement target, as intermediate tomographic data; tomographic data are obtained employing the plurality of pieces of intermediate tomographic data; and the tomographic image of the measurement target is generated employing the obtained tomographic data, wherein the light beam is emitted while the wavelength thereof is periodically swept within the predetermined wavelength band; and the plurality of divided interference signals are detected during a single period of the wavelength of the light beam being swept, and are divided into the divided interference signals for each of a plurality of different wavelength bands.