US5343536A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method of using image analysis under cross-polarized light to evaluate follicular biopsy slides
Assignee: Amway Corp
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Filing: 1992-11-20
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Granted: 1994-08-30
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Expires: 2012-11-20
Abstract
Abstract A method of evaluating follicular biopsy specimens (skin samples) in order to count the number of comedones (25) present in the specimen involving the steps of applying an adhesive, in vivo, to a subject's skin; applying a microscopic slide to the adhesive covered skin; allowing the adhesive to set adhering to the slide; removing the slide with the adhesive and the skin attached thereto, thus yielding a follicular biopsy specimen; examining the specimen under a stereoscopic microscope under cross-polarized light then evaluating the specimen using image analysis hardware and software to determine the number of sebaceous plugs or comedones existing in the specimen.
Inventors
- 👤 David G. Groh
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 10:51
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61B; A61B10/00; A61B10/02; G; G01; G01N; G01N15/00; G01N15/01; G01N2015/012; G01N2015/014; G01N21/00; G01N21/17; G01N21/21
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 14
Claim 1
Independent Claim
141 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: applying a film of adhesive to the skin of the subject; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of the skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; digitally scanning said skin specimen; digitally capturing and storing a binary image of said skin specimen; executing a computer program to evaluate said binary image; recording and storing data taken from said evaluation; and accessing said data using said computer program and thereafter performing an analysis of said skin specimen therewith for automatically evaluating the number of comedones contained in said skin specimen.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
141 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: applying a film of adhesive to the skin of the subject; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of the skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; digitally scanning said skin specimen; digitally capturing and storing a binary image of said skin specimen; executing a computer program to evaluate said binary image; recording and storing data taken from said evaluation; and accessing said data using said computer program and thereafter performing an analysis of said skin specimen therewith for automatically evaluating the number of comedones contained in said skin specimen.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said adhesive is a liquid polymerizable cyanoacrylate adhesive.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
212 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said computer program evaluates said specimen by following a machine-readable task list comprising the steps of: applying a value to the ambient lighting upon the stage of said compound microscope; capturing an image of said specimen under said cross-polarized light; subtracting and filtering out image data that equals said value of ambient light; calculating the intensity of the pixels of irregular objects appearing on said specimen; calculating the mean average of the intensity of pixels neighboring said irregular object; substituting the pixels of said irregular object with the pixels of said mean average; assigning 64 grey video levels to said image whereby a zero level will appear as black and a level of 63 and above will appear as bright light; turning to an on state any pixels that appear in grey levels between level 50 and level 63; turning to an off state all pixels falling outside of grey levels between the levels of 50 and 63; deleting clusters of pixels in said image that are between 0 and 10 pixels in size, whereby only comedone-sized clusters remain in said image; measuring said comedone-sized clusters appearing in said image for size and shape; and counting the total number of comedone-sized clusters appearing in said image.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said microscopic slide is glass.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said compound microscope is set for a magnification of 15X.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said method includes the prior step of applying a test substance to the skin of said human subject within at least one mapped test area.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said compound microscope is a stereoscopic compound microscope.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
95 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: applying a film of adhesive to the skin of the subject; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of the skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; and using image analysis hardware and software to evaluate said skin specimen and count the comedones thereon.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
95 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: applying a film of adhesive to the skin of the subject; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of the skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; and using image analysis hardware and software to evaluate said skin specimen and count the comedones thereon.
Claim 11
Independent Claim
150 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: mapping at least one test area upon the skin of a live human subject using a marking device; applying a test substance to said test area; covering said test area with occlusive tape; allowing said test substance to remain on said test area for a predetermined period of time; removing said occlusive tape from said test area; applying a film of adhesive to said test area; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of said skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; and using image analysis hardware and software to evaluate said skin specimen and count said comedones thereon.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
150 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: mapping at least one test area upon the skin of a live human subject using a marking device; applying a test substance to said test area; covering said test area with occlusive tape; allowing said test substance to remain on said test area for a predetermined period of time; removing said occlusive tape from said test area; applying a film of adhesive to said test area; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of said skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; and using image analysis hardware and software to evaluate said skin specimen and count said comedones thereon.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
197 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: mapping at least one test area upon the skin of a live human subject using a marking device; applying a test substance to said test area; covering said test area with occlusive tape; allowing said test substance to remain on said test area for a predetermined period of time; removing said occlusive tape from said test area; applying a film of adhesive to said test area; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of said skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; digitally scanning said skin specimen; digitally capturing and storing a binary image of said skin specimen; executing a computer program to evaluate said binary image; recording and storing data taken from said evaluation; and accessing said data using said computer program and thereafter performing an analysis of said skin specimen therewith for automatically evaluating the number of said comedones contained in said skin specimen.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
197 words
A method of evaluating skin samples taken from a human subject comprising the steps of: mapping at least one test area upon the skin of a live human subject using a marking device; applying a test substance to said test area; covering said test area with occlusive tape; allowing said test substance to remain on said test area for a predetermined period of time; removing said occlusive tape from said test area; applying a film of adhesive to said test area; applying a microscopic slide to said adhesive and allowing said adhesive to set; removing said slide and said film with comedones and other materials of said skin attached thereto from the subject thereby yielding a skin specimen; placing said skin specimen under a compound microscope; subjecting said skin specimen to cross-polarized light; digitally scanning said skin specimen; digitally capturing and storing a binary image of said skin specimen; executing a computer program to evaluate said binary image; recording and storing data taken from said evaluation; and accessing said data using said computer program and thereafter performing an analysis of said skin specimen therewith for automatically evaluating the number of said comedones contained in said skin specimen.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1997-08-29 | 1998-02-28 | 1998-08-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2001-08-29 | 2002-02-28 | 2002-08-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2005-08-29 | 2006-02-28 | 2006-08-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |