Patent ID: 8048094

Claim:
A method of providing simultaneous proportional control of multiple surgical parameters in an ophthalmic microsurgical system, comprising the steps of: providing an ophthalmic microsurgical system, said system comprising: a vitrectomy probe; a computer; a foot controller operatively coupled to said computer, said foot controller having a foot pedal capable of movement in a generally vertical plane of motion between a first end point and a second end point, wherein said first end point is a fully undepressed position of said foot pedal and said second end point is a fully depressed position of said foot pedal, and wherein said movement has a first region between said first end point and an intermediate point and a second region between said intermediate point and said second end point; a first surgical parameter, said first surgical parameter being a cut rate of said vitrectomy probe; and a second surgical parameter, said second surgical parameter being an aspiration vacuum level of said vitrectomy probe; determining a position of said foot pedal between said first end point and said second end point; proportionally controlling a value of said first surgical parameter as a function of said position of said foot pedal in said vertical plane of motion; and proportionally controlling a value of said second surgical parameter as a function of said position of said foot pedal in said vertical plane of motion simultaneous with said step of proportionally controlling said value of said first surgical parameter and independent of the manner in which said value of said first surgical parameter is proportionally controlled, wherein said first surgical parameter is maintained at a constant maximum value in said first region, said second surgical parameter is maintained at a constant minimum value in said first region, said first surgical parameter decreases in a linear manner in said second region, and said second surgical parameter increases in a non-linear manner in said second region.