Patent ID: 8318055

Claim:
A method of forming an ophthalmic Lens Precursor, the method comprising the steps of: positioning a substrate comprising a surface with an optical quality area in contact with a volume of reactive mixture, wherein the reactive mixture comprises a photoabsorptive component and the optical quality area comprises an arcuate surface; dividing a light beam of actinic radiation with a digital mirror device into multiple beams of light, wherein a wavelength of said actinic radiation comprises a wavelength at least partially absorbed by the photoabsorptive component; calculating a desired depth of cure of multiple respective voxels comprising a lens precursor form, wherein the calculation is accomplished via a controller executing executable software and the desired depth of cure of the multiple respective voxels is based upon a desired shape of the Lens Precursor form; calculating via the controller executing executable software, a length of time and an intensity of respective beams of actinic radiation to be applied through particular locations of the substrate to polymerize voxels of the reactive mixture and form multiple respective voxels to the respective calculated desired depths of cure; transmitting a first actinic radiation of the divided light beam through the substrate for the calculated time and intensity to polymerize the multiple respective voxels to the respective calculated desired depths of cure starting at the surface of the optical quality area of the substrate and extending into the volume of reactive mixture on a voxel by voxel basis; the transmission of the first actinic radiation forms a lens precursor which is comprised of a lens precursor form comprising a voxel non-fluent formed layer and a non-voxel fluent partially polymerized layer along the distal end of the lens precursor form away from said substrate; removing the substrate and the Lens Precursor from contact with the volume of reactive mixture to separate the lens precursor from the volume of reactive mixture wherein the ophthalmic Lens Precursor comprises a first surface portion along the optical quality area of the substrate, said first surface portion comprising voxels of non-fluent polymerized material and a second surface portion comprising non-voxel fluent partially polymerized material separate from the volume of reactive mixture which is located along a distal end of the voxel non-fluent polymerized layer away from the substrate.