Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE
Contact Lens Cleaner
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This patent application claims priority status under 35 U.S.C. 119(a) to
provisional
patent application number 62/792,446 with a filing date of January 15, 2019.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
A contact lens cleaner device may be used to clean contact lenses with the
flow of contact
lens solution, a filter system, and UV-lighting.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Contact lenses, which are used to enhance eyesight, are generally stored in
generic
contact lens cases. These cases allow for the contact lenses to rest in a
static body of contact lens
solution. The contact lens solution is used to retain the moisture of the
contact lenses when they
are not in use. Generic contact lens cases, however, do not sufficiently clean
contact lenses from
debris or other harmful material. Contact lenses that are not properly cleaned
can cause eye
infections, which has led to the rise in popularity of daily contact lenses,
instead of long-term
contact lenses which stand the risk of being contaminated or lost. There
exists a need for a device
which can properly clean contact lenses of debris and other harmful materials,
like bacteria.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the contact lens cleaner device for cleaning contact lenses
comprise a
pump to provide a flow of contact lens solution through a contact lens
compartment to physically
remove debris from the contact lens. The contact lens solution is pumped
through the contact
lens compartment housing to at least one contact lens. The pump for
circulating contact lens
solution through a contact lens storage compartment flushes debris from the
lens into a filter or
screen to collect the debris and prevent recontamination of the lens. The
device may comprise a
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source of ultraviolet light to provide sterilize the contact lens solution,
the contact lens storage
compartment, and / or the contact lens. Typically, UV-C radiation is used to
kill microbes.
The contact lens cleaner device comprises a left contact lens storage
compartment, the
left contact lens storage compartment comprising a left reservoir for storing
at least one contact
lens. The left storage compartment may comprise a left compartment inlet and a
left
compartment outlet to the reservoir of the contact lens storage compartment.
The compartment
inlet and the compartment outlet allow the pump to move contact lens solution
to flow through
the compartment and the reservoir over the contact lens and into the
compartment outlet. The
debris that is removed from the contact lens, the contact lens compartment
and/or the reservoir is
moved toward the outlet and into a filter or screen. The device comprises the
same previously
described components on the right side of the device.
As used herein, contact lens solution means any fluid used to store or clean
contact lens
such as but not limited to cleaning solutions, rinsing solutions, disinfecting
solutions,
multipurpose solutions, saline solutions, water, enzymatic cleaning solutions,
saltwater, protein
remover solution, hydrogen peroxide solutions, or combinations thereof, for
example.
The pump comprises a discharge port and a suction port. Embodiments of the
contact
lens cleaning device may comprise one or more contact lens solution pumps. For
example, one
pump may pump contact lens solution through both the left storage compartment
and the right
storage compartment in parallel or series or a separate pump may pump contact
lens solution to
each of the left storage compartment and the right storage compartment and,
therefore, the
contact lens cleaning device may comprise two pumps. The discharge port may be
in fluid
communication with both the left compartment inlet and the right compartment
inlet to provide
parallel flow through the left compartment and the right compartment. In an
alternative
embodiment, the pump discharge may be in fluid communication with only one of
the left
compartment inlet and the right compartment inlet. In such an alternative
embodiment, the outlet
of the one of the left compartment or the right compartment may flow into the
inlet of the other
of the left compartment and the right compartment to provide flow in series
between the
compartments.
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The pump may be connected to the compartments or reservoirs with tubing or the
compartments or reservoirs may drain or otherwise flow to a sump from which
the pump may
recirculate the contact lens solution to the compartment or reservoirs.
The contact lens cleaner device may further comprise at least one filter to
collect the
debris flushed from the contact lens, the compartment, and/or the
reservoir(s). In the embodiment
of the cleaning device incorporating parallel flow through the left
compartment and the right
compartment, the contact lens cleaning device may comprise a filter at the
exit of both the left
compartment and the right compartment or in the suction line of the pump after
the outlet of the
two compartments are recombined to having a filter inlet and a filter outlet,
wherein the filter
inlet is in fluid communication with one or both of the first compartment
outlet and the second
compartment outlet and the filter outlet is in fluid communication with the
suction port.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing embodiments only
and is
not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term
"and/or" includes any and
all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used
herein, the singular
forms "a," "an," and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well as
the singular forms,
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood
that the terms
"comprises" and/or "comprising," when used in this specification, specify the
presence of stated
features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude
the presence or
addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements,
components, and/or groups
thereof.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms)
used herein
have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having ordinary skill in
the art to which
this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as
those defined in
commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is
consistent with
their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure
and will not be
interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined
herein.
In describing the invention, it will be understood that a number of techniques
and steps
are disclosed. Each of these has individual benefit and each can also be used
in conjunction with
one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques.
Accordingly, for the sake of
clarity, this description will refrain from repeating every possible
combination of the individual
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steps in an unnecessary fashion. Nevertheless, the specification and claims
should be read with
the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the
invention and the
claims.
The embodiments of the described contact lens cleaner device and methods are
not
limited to the particular embodiments, components, method steps, and materials
disclosed herein
as such components, process steps, and materials may vary. Moreover, the
terminology
employed herein is used for the purpose of describing exemplary embodiments
only and the
terminology is not intended to be limiting since the scope of the various
embodiments of the
present invention will be limited only by the appended claims and equivalents
thereof.
Therefore, while embodiments of the invention are described with reference to
exemplary
embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that variations and
modifications can be
affected within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
Accordingly, the
scope of the various embodiments of the present invention should not be
limited to the above
discussed embodiments and should only be defined by the following claims and
all equivalents.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows the preferred embodiment of the invention when viewed from the
right side
with the hingedly connected lid being open. The outer shell of the device is
not shown in this
figure, to allow for the viewing of the internal components of the invention.
Because this view of
the invention is from the right side, it does not show those components which
are duplicated on
the left side.
FIG. 2 shows the preferent embodiment of the invention when view from the
outside
with the hingedly connected lid being open. This view does not show the
internal components of
the invention.
FIG. 3 shows an additional embodiment of the invention when viewed from the
right
side with the hingedly connected lid being open. The outer shell of the device
is not shown in
this figure, to allow for the viewing of the internal components of the
invention. Because this
view of the invention is from the right side, it does not show those
components which are
duplicated on the left side.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The preferred embodiment of the contact lens cleaner device, shown in FIG. 1,
uses
contact lens solution to clean and store contact lenses. As used herein,
contact lens solution
means any fluid used to store or clean contact lens such as but not limited to
cleaning solutions,
rinsing solutions, disinfecting solutions, multipurpose solutions, saline
solutions, water,
enzymatic cleaning solutions, saltwater, protein remover solution, hydrogen
peroxide solutions,
or combinations thereof, for example. This embodiment comprises a contact lens
storage
compartment 11, a pump 20, a power supply 60, and a hingedly connected lid 50.
The contact
lens storage compartment 11 comprises two reservoirs, a right reservoir 13,
and a left reservoir
12; two compartment inlets, a right compartment inlet 15, and a left
compartment inlet 14; and
two compartment outlets, a right compartment outlet 17, and a left compartment
outlet 16; and
two filters 30. The reservoirs 13 and 12 can each be used to hold a contact
lens. In this
embodiment, the reservoirs 13 and 12 are concave with a bowl shape. The
reservoirs 13 and 12
also comprise a plurality of protrusions. These protrusions can be small holes
or nubs that come
in contact with the contact lenses, to remove debris from the contact lenses
via abrasion. Each
reservoir 13 and 12 also comprise an inlet that is tangentially oriented to
the circular cross-
section of the reservoir. These inlets are the right compartment inlet 15 and
the left compartment
inlet 14. The compartment inlets 15 and 14 can allow contact lens solution to
pour into the
reservoirs 13 and 12. The compartment inlets 15 and 14 being tangentially
oriented to the
circular cross section allow for the flow of contact lens solution to
move/rotate the contact
lenses. This movement/rotation of the contact lenses, coupled with the
plurality of protrusions,
enhances the contact lens cleaner device's ability to remove debris from the
contact lens. Each
reservoir 13 and 12 also comprise a compartment outlet, the right compartment
outlet 17, and the
left compartment outlet 16. The compartment outlets 17 and 16 are located at
the bottom of the
reservoirs 13 and 12, and allow contact lens solution to flow out of the
reservoirs 13 and 12. The
compartment outlets 17 and 16 are each connected to a filter 30. The filters
30 are used to filter
debris that has been cleaned from the contact lenses away from the contact
lens solution. The
filters 30 in this embodiment are a basket-style filters which catch the
debris in the filter and
allow the contact solution to move through the contact lens cleaner device.
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The preferred embodiment in FIG. 1 shows the pump 20. The pump 20 comprises a
pump
suction port 22 and a pump discharge port 21. The pump suction port 22 sucks
in the contact lens
solution in the device, as well as the contact lens solution that has passed
through the filters 30.
The pump discharge port 21 pumps the contact lens solution to the compartment
inlets 15 and
14. The power supply 60 is connected to the pump 20, giving it power to
perform the work of
sucking in the contact solution and pumping it out to the compartment inlets
15 and 14.
In this embodiment in FIG. 1, the hingedly connected lid 50 is located on the
top of the
contact lens cleaner device, and comprises two contact lens storage
compartment lids 19, and
two UV-lights 70. In this embodiment, the UV-lights 70 are comprise of UV-C
lights. The
contact lens storage compartment lids 19 partially or fully cover each of the
reservoirs 13 and 12.
The contact lens storage compartment lids 19 are able to protect the contact
lenses from any
debris outside of the device, and also secure the contact lenses if the
contact lens cleaner device
is moved or transported. The contact lens storage compartment lids 19 also
keep the contact lens
solution from leaking from the device. The UV-lights 70 are located above each
of the reservoir
13 and 12. In this embodiment the UV-lights 70 are built into the contact lens
storage
compartment lids 19. The UV-lights 70 are able to clean the contact lens
solution with the light
and kill bacteria on the contact lenses with the light. The UV-lights 70 are
connected to the
power supply 60.
An additional embodiment of the contact lens cleaner device 10 is shown in FIG
3. In
this embodiment, the compartment outlets 17 and 16 are located near top of the
reservoirs 13 and
12 and above the compartment inlets 15 and 14, instead of at the bottom of the
reservoirs 13 and
12. The compartments outlets 17 and 16 being located higher allows them to act
like an
overflow, similar to how an overflow works in a residential sink. In this
embodiment, contact
solution would still be pumped via the pump 20, and flow through the
compartment inlets 15 and
14, into the reservoirs 13 and 12, but as the reservoirs 13 and 12 became
filled the contact lens
solution would flow into the compartment outlets 17 and 16. The compartment
outlets 17 and 16
would also allow the flow of debris into the filters 30.
Additional embodiments of the contact lens cleaner device, comprise different
types of
filters 30. The filters 30 could be of another style than a basket-style
filter; they could also be
screens. In another embodiment, the invention may comprise only one filter
that allows the flow
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of contact lens solution coming from both compartment outlets 17 and 16. In
another
embodiment, the invention may comprise one pump 20, that pumps the contact
lens solution in a
series, or in parallel, or in another pattern; the invention can also comprise
more than one pump:
one for pumping solution to each compartment inlet 15 and 14. Another
embodiment of the
invention could comprise a system of compartment inlets and outlets which are
utilized by both
reservoirs 13 and 12, where one there is one compartment inlet that allows the
flow of contact
lens solution into both reservoirs 13 and 12, and one compartment outlet also
shared by both
reservoirs 13 and 12. In another embodiment of the invention the power supply
60 could be a
battery, multiple batteries, or another similar form of power supply. In
another embodiment of
the invention, there may be only one contact lens storage lids 19 that covers
both reservoirs 13
and 12, or the contact lens storage compartment lids 19 could cover the
reservoirs 13 and 12 by
screwing on or snapping in place. In another embodiment of the invention, one
UV-light, or a
plurality of UV-lights may be used in place of two UV-lights 70. In another
embodiment of the
device, the contact lens storage compartment 11 may be detachable from the
rest of the device,
allowing for cleaning or replacement. In another embodiment of the device, a
pump controller
may be used to control the pump 20. This controller may be in the form of a
button on the
device, or some other form of controller.
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