Patent ID: 7883031

Claim:
An ophthalmic fluid atomizer configured to deliver an ophthalmic fluid to an eye, the ophthalmic fluid atomizer comprising: a body having a proximal end and a distal end; a reservoir connected to the body, wherein the reservoir contains an ophthalmic fluid disposed therein; a discharge plate disposed at the distal end, wherein the discharge plate includes a plurality of openings extending therethrough; propulsion means for transmitting the ophthalmic fluid from the reservoir to the discharge plate, wherein transmission of the ophthalmic fluid across the discharge plate generates a plume of ophthalmic fluid along a direction directly toward the eye, wherein the plume of ophthalmic fluid travels, without being subject to a dynamic force generated by a mechanical device of the ophthalmic fluid atomizer that is physically separate from the propulsion means, from the discharge plate to the eye and at the eye has a momentum that has a magnitude that is insufficient to trigger at least one of an ocular blink reflex and a lacrimation reflex of the eye; a processor electronically connected to the propulsion means, wherein the processor controls operation of the propulsion means; an activation switch operatively coupled to the processor to activate the propulsion means; and an adjustable dosage adjuster, physically separate from the activation switch, operatively coupled to the processor and configured to adjust discharge duration of the ophthalmic fluid from the propulsion means.