Patent ID: 8385615

Claim:
A method for spectrally unmixing light data corresponding to light emitted from multiple different fluorescent light sources internal to an animal, the method comprising: selecting an excitation wavelength band for excitation light provided to the animal; selecting an emission wavelength band that limits light wavelengths collected from the animal; providing excitation light, into the animal, that is limited to the excitation wavelength band; capturing a first image of at least a portion of the animal, where the first image includes light data that is limited in wavelength to the emission wavelength band and corresponds to light emitted by the multiple different fluorescent light sources in the emission wavelength band internal to the animal; changing the excitation wavelength band and/or the emission wavelength band; capturing at least one additional image of at least the portion of the animal that uses a different combination of excitation wavelength band and emission wavelength band for each additional image, where each additional image includes light data that corresponds to light emitted by the multiple different fluorescent light sources internal to the animal and is limited in wavelength to the emission wavelength band of the different combination; and using an iterative solution process, unmixing spectra for the multiple fluorescent light sources internal to the animal the light data in the images to provide a spectrum for each light source of the multiple different fluorescent light sources, wherein each spectrum provides wavelength-dependent excitation and/or emission information about the corresponding fluorescent light source.