Patent ID: 7670330

Claim:
A method for operating a surgical handpiece, comprising: placing a handpiece in an operative relationship with an eye for a surgical procedure; supplying irrigation fluid from an irrigation fluid source to the eye; applying an aspiration source to the handpiece in order to aspirate the irrigation fluid from the eye through the handpiece; controlling a vacuum in the handpiece with a controller having a maximum allowable vacuum level in the handpiece; sensing a vacuum level corresponding to an occlusion of the handpiece; and reducing the maximum allowable vacuum level to a new maximum allowable vacuum level that is less than the maximum allowable vacuum level based in part on the vacuum level corresponding to the occlusion; wherein the vacuum in the handpiece is reduced to the new maximum allowable vacuum level; and determining from the vacuum in the handpiece a vacuum drop and in response to the vacuum drop falling below the new maximum allowable vacuum level increasing the level of vacuum.