Patent ID: 7572010

Claim:
A cornea imaging apparatus comprising: an illumination optical system having an illumination source for directing a slit light beam on a diagonal into an eye under examination; an imaging optical system having a photoelectric element for receiving a reflected light beam produced by reflection of the slit light beam from a cornea of the eye under examination, and for imaging the cornea; actuating means for moving the illumination optical system and the imaging optical system in totality in a direction nearer to or further from the eye under examination to bring about focusing; imaging process retracting control means for controlling the actuating means during an imaging operation by the imaging optical system, to retract the illumination optical system and the imaging optical system in a direction away from the eye under examination in a cross direction of the eye under examination; continuous imaging means for taking multiple images of the cornea at different times and positions by the photoelectric element of the imaging optical system during a retracting operation by the imaging process retracting control means; and imaging operation control means for controlling imaging operation status of the cornea by the continuous imaging means during the retracting operation by the imaging process retracting control means, with reference to a photoreception signal of reflected light from the cornea of the eye under examination.