Field of the Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a phototherapeutic eyewear device and a kit for the same.

Summary of the Invention

[0002] Aspects of the invention are directed to a phototherapeutic eyewear device comprising a frame structure comprising one or more lens attachment sections and one or more lens apparatuses, each lens apparatus comprising an attachment section configured to removably attach the lens apparatus to the one or more lens attachment sections and a lens member comprising a first transparent member and an optical modification member configured to modify the intensity of light within a first wavelength range to facilitate a phototherapeutic effect in the wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device.

[0003] In some embodiments, the optical modification member may be one of a film adhered to the first transparent member, a material sprayed onto the first transparent member, or may be integrally formed with the first transparent member.

[0004] In some embodiments, the optical modification member may be configured to decrease the intensity of light within the first wavelength range. In further embodiments, the first wavelength range may be a range from 400 nm to 510 nm. In yet further embodiments, the first wavelength range may be a range from 450 nm to 470 nm.

[0005] In some embodiments, the optical modification member may be further configured to increase the intensity of light within a second wavelength range. The optical modification member may comprise one of a fluorescent material, a phosphorescent material, and a quantum dot material. The second wavelength range may be a range from one of 625 nm to 740 nm, 605 nm to 660 nm, and 800 to 810 nm.

[0006] In some embodiments, each lens apparatus further may comprise a second transparent member and the optical modification member may be positioned between the first transparent member and the second transparent member.

[0007] In some embodiments, the phototherapeutic eyewear device may further comprise a light emitting apparatus configured to emit light in the direction of the lens member and be observable by a wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device within a second wavelength range. The second wavelength range may be a range from one of 625 nm to 740 nm, 605 nm to 660 nm, and 800 to 810 nm. [0008] In some embodiments, the lens attachment section may comprise a magnetic material and the attachment section may be configured to magnetically attach to the lens attachment section.

[0009] Further embodiments of the invention are directed to a kit comprising a frame structure comprising one or more lens attachment sections and first and second sets of lens apparatuses, each lens apparatus comprising an attachment section configured to removably attach the lens apparatus to the one or more lens attachment sections and a lens member comprising a first transparent member and an optical modification member configured to modify the intensity of light within a wavelength range to facilitate a phototherapeutic effect in the wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device; The optical modification member of the first set of lens apparatuses may be configured to modify light within a first wavelength range, the optical modification member of the second set of lens apparatuses may be configured to modify light within a second wavelength range.

[0010] In some embodiments, the optical modification member of the first set of lens apparatuses may be configured to reduce the intensity light within the first wavelength range from 400 nm to 510 nm and the optical modification member of the second set of lens apparatuses may be configured to increase the intensity light within the second wavelength range from 800 to 810 nm.

[0011] In some embodiments, the optical modification member of the first set of lens apparatuses may be configured to reduce the intensity light within the first wavelength range from 450 nm to 470 nm and increase the intensity of light within a third wavelength range from 605 nm to 660 nm and the optical modification member of the second set of lens apparatuses may be configured to decrease the intensity light within the second wavelength range from 450 nm to 470 nm and increase the intensity of light within a fourth wavelength range from 800 nm to 810 nm.

[0012] In some embodiments, the first set of lens apparatuses comprise light emitting apparatus configured to emit light in the direction of the lens member and be observable by a wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device within a third wavelength range from 605 nm to 660 nm.

[0013] In some embodiments, the second set of lens apparatuses comprise light emitting apparatus configured to emit light in the direction of the lens member and be observable by a wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device within a third wavelength range from 800 nm to 810 nm. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a phototherapeutic eyewear device according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0015] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a lens of the phototherapeutic eyewear device of FIG. 1.

[0016] FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of a lens apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0017] FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of a lens apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0018] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the lens of FIG. 2 with a portion thereof removed.

[0019] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the phototherapeutic eyewear device of FIG. 1 with the lens apparatuses detached from a frame structure thereof.

[0020] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a phototherapeutic eyewear device kit according to an embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0021] The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Those of ordinary skill in the art realize that the following descriptions of the embodiments of the present invention are illustrative and are not intended to be limiting in any way. Other embodiments of the present invention will readily suggest themselves to such skilled persons having the benefit of this disclosure. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

[0022] Although the following detailed description contains many specifics for the purposes of illustration, anyone of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that many variations and alterations to the following details are within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following embodiments of the invention are set forth without any loss of generality to, and without imposing limitations upon, the invention.

[0023] In this detailed description of the present invention, a person skilled in the art should note that directional terms, such as “above,” “below,” “upper,” “lower,” and other like terms are used for the convenience of the reader in reference to the drawings. Also, a person skilled in the art should notice this description may contain other terminology to convey position, orientation, and direction without departing from the principles of the present invention.

[0024] Furthermore, in this detailed description, a person skilled in the art should note that quantitative qualifying terms such as “generally,” “substantially,” “mostly,” and other terms are used, in general, to mean that the referred to object, characteristic, or quality constitutes a majority of the subject of the reference. The meaning of any of these terms is dependent upon the context within which it is used, and the meaning may be expressly modified.

[0025] An embodiment of the invention, as shown and described by the various figures and accompanying text, provides a phototherapeutic eyewear device. As shown in FIGS. 1 , 2, 5, and 6, a phototherapeutic eyewear device 100 according to an embodiment of the invention is presented. The phototherapeutic eyewear device 100 may comprise a frame structure 110 and one or more phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120. In some embodiments, the phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120 may be fixedly attached to the frame structure 110 by any means or method as is known in the art, including, but not limited to, interference fits between the phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120 and a portion of the frame structure 110, the phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120 comprising a depression within which an extruding ridge and/or a thread member of a portion of the frame structure 110 may be positioned, the use of adhesives and/or glues, the use of fasteners, and the like. In some embodiments, the phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120 may be removably attached to the frame structure 110 by any means or method as is known in the art, including the above methods (in some embodiments excluding glues and adhesives) wherein the attachment is detachable, magnetic attachment, and the like. Such removable attachment will be discussed in greater detail below.

[0026] The phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120 may be configured to alter the spectral power distribution SPD of light incident thereupon and observed by a wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device 100. Such alteration may result in an SPD intended to one of induce a biological response and avoid an induced biological response in the wearer of the phototherapeutic eyewear device 100.

[0027] Referring now specifically to FIGS. 2-5, additional aspects of the phototherapeutic lens apparatuses 120 will be discussed. A phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 according to an embodiment of the invention may comprise a lens member 122. The lens member 122 may be at least partially transparent to light within the visible spectrum (electromagnetic radiation (EMR) having a wavelength within a range from 380 nanometers (nm) to 750 nm). In some embodiments, the lens member 122 may be at least partially transparent to light within a near infrared spectrum (EMR having a wavelength from 750 nm to 1 .4 micrometers) and/or within a range of ultraviolet light (for example, EMR having a wavelength within a range from 315 nm to 400 nm). In some embodiments, the lens member 122 may be configured, by active or passive means, method, or structure, to increase or decrease the light emitted form the lens member 122 in the direction of the wearer within one or more wavelength ranges to accomplish the aforementioned biological responses.

[0028] The phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may comprise one or more structures operable to accomplish modification of the SPD of environmental light propagating therethrough. In some embodiments, the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may comprise a transparent member 123 and an optical modification member 124. The optical modification member 124 may be fixedly attached to the transparent member

123 by any means or method as is known in the art. In some embodiments, the optical modification member 124 may be a film configured to adhere to the transparent member

123. In some embodiments, the optical modification member 124 may be in the form of a material that is sprayed onto the transparent member 123. These embodiments are exemplary only, and any means or method of affixing the optical modification member

124 to the transparent member 123 as is known in the art is contemplated and included within the scope of the invention. Moreover, in some embodiments, the optical modification member 124 and the transparent member may be integrally formed and/or formed as a single structure, with an optically effective material either forming or being contained within the transparent member 123.

[0029] The optical modification member 124 may be configured to at least one of increase and decrease the intensity of light within a target wavelength range. Where the optical modification member 124 is configured to decrease the intensity of light within the target wavelength range, it may be configured as a filter configured to absorb at least a portion of light within the target wavelength range, in some embodiments absorbing all light within the target wavelength range. In some embodiments, the optical modification member 124 may be configured to decrease the intensity of light within a first target wavelength range and increase the intensity of light within a second target wavelength range. In such embodiments, the optical modification member 124 may be configured to absorb some or all light within the first target wavelength range and emit light within the second target wavelength range. In such embodiments, the optical modification member 124 may comprise a material operable to absorb light within a first wavelength range and emit light within a second wavelength range as is known in the art, including, but not limited to, fluorescent material, phosphorescent material, quantum dots, and any other photoluminescent materials as are known in the art.

[0030] The ranges selected for the first and second target wavelength ranges may determine the biological affect that is enhanced or inhibited by the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120. In a first embodiment, the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may be configured to inhibit the progression of myopia. In such an embodiment, the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may be configured to generally reduce or inhibit the irradiation of the eyes of the wearer with blue light, for example, light within a wavelength range from 400 nm to 510 nm, in further embodiments within a wavelength range from 420 nm to 490 nm, in further embodiments within a wavelength range from 430 nm to 480 nm, in further embodiments within a wavelength range from 450 nm to 470. Each of these wavelengths may correspond to the aforementioned first wavelength range. In some embodiments, the first wavelength range may comprise EMR having a peak wavelength centered within a range from 450 to 470 nm and a half-bandwidth within a range from 5 nm to 10 nm. In further embodiments, the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may be configured to increase the intensity of light within the second wavelength range, the second wavelength range being different from the first wavelength range. The second wavelength range may correspond to light within one or both of a red portion of the visible spectrum and the infrared spectrum, including within a range from 625 nm to 740 nm, within a range from 635 nm to 730 nm, within a range from 605 nm to 660 nm, and light having a peak intensity at a wavelength within a range from 605 nm to 660 nm and having a half-bandwidth within a range from 5 nm to 10 nm.

[0031] While myopia is mentioned, it is contemplated and included within the scope of the invention that biological affects intended to treat or minimize other disorders, conditions, or other optically-affected physiological events. Moreover, while first and second target wavelength ranges are provided above, it is contemplated and included within the scope of the invention that any number of target wavelength ranges, with such wavelength ranges being targeted either for increasing or decreasing the intensity of light there within, may be accomplished by a phototherapeutic eyewear device 100 according to the present invention. [0032] The first transparent member 123 may be formed of any material used in the art for eyeglass lenses, including, but not limited to, polycarbonate, plastics, Trivex®, glass, and the like.

[0033] An alternate embodiment is shown in FIG. 4, where the lens member 122 may comprise first and second transparent members 123, 125 and an optical modification member 124 positioned therebetween. Such an embodiment may reduce the chance of damage to the optical modification member 124.

[0034] Moreover, while a single optical modification member 124 is presented, it is contemplated and included within the scope of the invention that any number of optical modification members may be comprised by the lens member 122. Such embodiments may have multiple target wavelength ranges as discussed above.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 5, in some embodiments, the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may further comprise a light emitting apparatus 126. The light emitting apparatus 126 may be operable to emit light within a wavelength range as described above, where an increase in the intensity of light within the wavelength range is desired. The light emitting apparatus 126 may be configured to emit light in the direction of the lens member 122 such that light emitted thereby is observed by the wearer. The light emitting apparatus 126 may comprise light-emitting devices configured to emit light within a target wavelength range. Such devices may include, but are not limited to, semiconductor devices, such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs), including organic LEDs, phosphorescent LEDs, and the like.

[0036] A further embodiment of the invention may be directed to treating cataracts. In such embodiments, one or both of the optical modification member 124 and the light emitting apparatus 126 may emit light within a wavelength range from 800 nm to 810 nm, and/or emit light having a peak intensity at 805 nm with a 5-10 nm half-bandwidth.

[0037] The phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 may further comprise an attachment section 127. The attachment section 127 may be configured to removably attach the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 to the frame structure 110 by any means or method as is known in the art. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the attachment section 127 may be magnetic and figured to magnetically attract a portion of the frame structure 110. The magnetic attraction there between may removably attach the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 to the frame structure 110. In some embodiments, the attachment section 127 may be configured to be positioned at least partially within a structure of the frame structure 110 and form an interference fit therebetween. It is contemplated and included within the scope of the invention that a user may have multiple discrete phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120, each phototherapeutic lens apparatus 120 being configured to have a different biological effect, and accordingly being configured to have light emitted from the phototherapeutic lens apparatus 122 having different SPDs. Such removability and interchangeability may enable a user to tailor the phototherapeutic eyewear device 100 according to their immediate needs.

[0038] Referring now to FIG. 6, the phototherapeutic eyewear device 100 is shown with the lens apparatuses 120 detached from the frame structure 110. As discussed above, attachment sections 127 of the lens apparatuses 120 may be configured to attach to corresponding lens attachment sections 112 of the frame structure 110. The lens attachment sections 112 may generally conform to the shape of the lens apparatuses 120; in the present embodiment, they are circular. The frame structure 110 may further comprise a bridge 113 between the lens attachment sections 112, end pieces 114 extending from the lens attachment sections 112, temples 115 that may be rotatably attached at one end thereof to the end sections 114, and temple tips 116 at an opposite end of the temples 115. The lens attachment sections 112 may form the rims of the phototherapeutic eyewear device 100. In some embodiments, only a portion of the lens attachment section 112 may perform attachment functionality, while the remainder serves an ornamental purpose and/or provides support for the lens apparatus 120 but does not facilitate attachment. In the present embodiment, the lens attachment section 112 may comprise a magnetic material operable to interact with the magnetic field generated by the attachment section 127 to removably attach the lens apparatus 120. The lens apparatuses 120 may be removably attached to the frame structure 110 by positioning them adjacent to the lens attachment sections 112, such that the above magnetic attraction is accomplished. In alternative embodiments, the lens apparatuses 120 may be positioned within an aperture 117 formed by the lens attachment sections 112 and form an interference fit, thereby removably attaching the lens apparatuses 120.

[0039] In some embodiments, the frame structure 110 may comprise one or more corrective lenses (not shown). The corrective lenses may be any corrective lens as is known in the art and configured to address eye disorders, such as, but not limited to, myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism, by modalities other than the phototherapy performed by the lens apparatuses 120. The corrective lenses may refract the light passing therethrough to address such eye disorders. The SPD of light passing therethrough may not be affected. In some embodiments, the corrective lenses may be positioned within the aperture 117 at a location comparatively proximal to the eye of the wearer, and the lens apparatuses 120 may be positioned at a location comparatively distal to the eye of the wearer relative to the corrective lenses. Accordingly, the light emitted from the lens apparatuses 120 may maintain the same SPD as it passes through the corrective lenses.

[0040] Additionally, in some embodiments, at least one of the frame structures 110 and the lens apparatus 120 may comprise a battery (not shown). The battery may provide electrical power for the operation of the light-emitting apparatus 126. When comprised by the frame structure 110, the removable attachment of the lens apparatuses 120 to the frame structure 110 may simultaneously establish an electrical connection between the battery and the light-emitting apparatus 126. Such connection may be accomplished by at least one of causing the physical engagement between electrical pads comprised by the lens apparatus 120 and the frame structure 110 or placing an inductive charging system, the transmission portion comprised by the frame structure 110 and the receiving portion comprised by the lens apparatus 120, in sufficiently close proximity to allow for the wireless transfer of power.

[0041] Referring now to FIG. 7, a kit 700 according to an embodiment of the present invention is presented. The kit 700 may comprise a container 702 having positioned there within a frame structure 704 substantially as described above, a first set of lens apparatuses 706 configured to accomplish a first spectral power distribution to cause a first biological effect, and a second set of lens apparatuses 708 configured to accomplish a second spectral power distribution to cause a second biological effect. The first and second SPDs may be different, and the first and second biological effects may also be different.

[0042] Some of the illustrative aspects of the present invention may be advantageous in solving the problems herein described and other problems not discussed which are discoverable by a skilled artisan.

[0043] While the above description contains much specificity, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any embodiment, but as exemplifications of the presented embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications and variations are possible within the teachings of the various embodiments. While the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made, and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best or only mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the description of the invention. Also, in the drawings and the description, there have been disclosed exemplary embodiments of the invention and, although specific terms may have been employed, they are unless otherwise stated used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention therefore not being so limited. Moreover, the use of the terms first, second, etc. do not denote any order or importance, but rather the terms first, second, etc. are used to distinguish one element from another. Furthermore, the use of the terms a, an, etc. do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items.