METHOD FOR UTILIZING LUBRICANT-DISSOLVING FLUORESCENT AGENT IN DETECTING SYSTEM FOR THE FLUORESCENT AGENT AND LUBRICATING COATING

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To visualize a lubricant coating on a surface of a medical instrument by dissolving a fluorescent agent in a lubricant, and illuminating the surface of the instrument with an electromagnetic radiation light which can excite fluorescent radiation. SOLUTION: This is a method for detecting a lubricant coating on a surface of an article, particularly for visualizing a coating 22 of polydimethylsiloxane on a surface 12 of a medical instrument 14. Specifically, a fluorescent agent is dissolved in a polydimethylsiloxane lubricant and the lubricated surface 12 is illuminated by an electromagnetic radiation light 18 that can excite fluorescent radiation. An inspection system 10 determines a preset degree for coating the polydimethylsiloxane lubricant to the surface 12 of the medical instrument 14. A light source 16 for the electromagnetic radiation light 18 is preferably an ultraviolet light source. A detecting device 30 preferably with a sensitivity to a wavelength 450nm-520nm is arranged so as to detect a fluorescent radiation 24 from the fluorescent agent in the coating 22.