Safety shutdown system for a dye laser

Details Safety shutdown system for a dye laser Safety shutdown system for a dye laser

1986-02-24

1988-03-22

Davie, James W.

Coherent light generators

Particular active media

Liquid

372 33, 372 38, 372 54, H01S 320

Patent

active

047334002

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
DESCRIPTION

1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a dye laser and in particular to a safety shutdown system for a dye laser.
2. Background Art
It is of interest to use dye lasers in many fields of technology and medicine. The type of dye laser on which the invention is based has the advantage that there is a comparatively large dye reservoir, so that the dye supply is not used up too quickly. In the case of such dye lasers, the dye is pumped from a supply vessel into a pressure vessel, in which there is an air pocket, which damps the vibrations, power fluctuations of the feed pump, etc. From this pressure vessel, the dye passes out as a so-called jet into the area where the actual laser process takes place. When the dye has left this area, it flows back into the supply vessel.
In spite of this, the presently available dye lasers require continuous service to ensure that they are always operational.
In particular, their operating characteristics can vary after only a short time. As a result they are unsuitable for routine use in medical technology and particularly in examining and/or performing surgery on the eyes.
An object of the invention is to provide a dye laser, which can be operated with constant operating characteristics even in the case of long service intervals.


DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The invention has recognized that a solution of the problem is possible if use is made of a dye laser, in which a pump pumps dye from a supply vessel into a pressure vessel, in which there is an air pocket for damping vibrations and fluctuations in the delivery of the pump and from which the dye is discharged as a jet via a nozzle into an active laser region and subsequently flows back into the supply vessel by means of a line. The inventors have recognized that the fluctuations in the operating data occurring with known dye lasers of this type are often caused by faults or disturbances in the dye circuit. The reason for these faults can, e.g., be blocking of lines, the nozzle through which the dye is discharged as a jet, an incorrect opening of a solenoid valve between the pressure vessel and the nozzle, leaks in the dye circuit or a too low filling level in the dye supply vessel.
According to the invention these different causes for fluctuations in the laser operating characteristics can be detected by monitoring the filling level in the supply vessel. Thus, the invention provides a control, to which is applied the output signal of at least one level sensor and which detects from the drop in the filling level after switching on the dye laser whether there is an operating fault or the laser is operating correctly.
As pressure builds up after switching on the feed pump, the air pocket in the pressure vessel is compressed. Thus, the level in the supply vessel must drop by a certain amount after switching on and said amount is dependent on the geometry data of the dye circuit and the pressure built up by the pump.
If the level does not drop by this amount, it means that, e.g., a line is blocked, the pump delivery is too low or the solenoid valve which permits the dye discharge is or is not adequately opened. However, if the level drops too sharply, this can indicate a leak in the dye circuit or the like.
Thus, the dye laser is always switched off if the level does not drop by a predetermined amount, because then there must be faults in the dye circuit, which very probably influenced the operating characteristics of the dye laser.
The control provided according to the invention can be constructed in a known manner, e.g., from commercially available analog or digital circuits or a microprocessor, which can also attend to other control functions in the dye laser.
The control prevents the dye laser from being put into operation, if the level in the supply vessel is too high or low before switching on. A too high or low filling level in the supply vessel can even lead to variations in the operating characteristics of the dye laser in the case of an undisturbed dye circuit. It is naturally possible to use any sens

REFERENCES:
patent: 4364015 (1982-12-01), Drake et al.

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