METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXAMINING TISSUE BY TRANSILLUMINATION USING NEAR INFRARED LIGHT

摘要

A method of automatically generating a standardized image of an illuminated object uses a transillumination apparatus comprising a light probe (10) having a light source (62) emitting a scattered light beam, a CCD camera (12) having a lens aperture for controlling the amount of light received by the CCD camera (12) and an amplifier for amplifying an output signal proportional to the amount of light received by the CCD camera, a computer processing system (38) and a monitor. The method comprises the steps of illuminating an object with the scattered light beam; collecting the light beam with a CCD camera (12) after the light beam has passed throught the object; transforming the collected light into an image having a mean grey scale and displaying the image on a monitor; comparing grey scale of the image with a pre-assigned upper threshold and lower threshold and generating a plurality of control signals to automatically regulate the opening of the lens aperture, the gain of the CCD camera and the brightness of the light source until the mean grey scale of the image lies within the preassigned upper threshold and lower threshold.