PFI:AIR-TT: Personal Whole Slide Imaging Device with Liquid Lenses

这个PFI: AIR技术翻译项目的重点是降低数字病理学中整个幻灯片成像的系统维度和过程复杂性。这很重要，因为病理玻片的光学检查是疾病诊断和同行咨询的主要方法。以高光学分辨率捕获整个幻灯片的整片成像已被证明有效地促进了对遗传学，蛋白质组学，基因组学和细胞组学的理解，这大大改善了临床结果。然而，整个幻灯片成像（WSI）设备的高昂成本和有限的可用性为该技术的广泛采用设置了巨大的障碍。该项目将开发一种个人WSI设备，使病理学家能够使用智能手机或平板电脑获取和共享病理切片，从而解决市场对价格合理的数字病理设备的需求。为了做到这一点，该项目将转化先前的自适应液体透镜技术的研究成果，使用具有单个驱动单元的复合弹性体-液体变焦透镜，这将减少系统尺寸和整个幻灯片成像的过程复杂性。它可以在不影响自适应成像系统的光学分辨率和小型化特性的情况下，仅通过一个驱动输入即可改变变焦比。它还消除了为改变光学放大倍数而置换或更换固体光学元件的需要。该项目将产生一个个人全幻灯片成像装置的原型，该装置采用复合弹性体-液体变焦镜头。该个人整片成像装置具有以下独特的特点：复合变焦镜头内的两个液体透镜可同时、同步驱动；驱动复合变焦镜头仅需一个驱动单元；该设备的尺寸比目前数字病理学中使用的成像系统要小得多。与市场上领先的竞争对手数字病理系统和其他使用固体光学元件的整体成像设备相比，这些功能提供了使数字病理负担得起、易于使用和易于操作的优势。该项目解决了以下技术差距，因为它从研究发现转化为商业应用。复合弹性体-液体变焦透镜的使用大大简化了光学结构和成像系统的整体尺寸。这使得成像设备的便携性和与移动个人设备（智能手机和平板电脑）的流畅工作成为可能。为了达到足够的光学分辨率，将通过迭代光力学模拟和实验验证来研究用于液体透镜的变厚度弹性体膜的厚度分布。这将产生新的知识，以推进弹性体液体透镜在许多高质量成像应用中的使用。除了光学性能，该设备还利用移动设备无与伦比的即时共享能力，高效传输整个切片病理图像。鉴于移动设备的普及，其不断提高的处理和传输速度，以及移动应用程序的多功能性，液体透镜个人整片成像设备有望成为数字病理学的一种有价值的解决方案，以提高研究和临床结果。此外，参与该项目的人员，包括研究生，本科生和K-12学生，将通过与潜在客户的互动，共同创造研讨会以及工程科学家，病理学家和商业教育者的全面指导，获得创新，创业和技术翻译经验。

This PFI: AIR Technology Translation project focuses on reducing the system dimension and process complexity of whole slide imaging in digital pathology. This is important because optical examination of pathological slides is a primary approach for disease diagnosis and peer consultations. Whole slide imaging that can capture the entire slide with high optical resolutions has been proven effective to advance an understanding of genetics, proteomics, genomics, and cellomics, which has greatly improved clinical outcomes. However, the prohibitive cost and limited availability of whole slide imaging (WSI) equipment have set a huge barrier for wide adoption of this technology. This project will address the unmet market need for affordable digital pathology equipment by developing a personal WSI device that allows pathologists to acquire and share pathological slides using their smartphones or tablet computers.To do this, the project will translate prior research results on an adaptive liquid lenses technology using a composite elastomer-liquid zoom lens with one single actuation unit, which will reduce the system dimension and process complexity of whole slide imaging. It can change the zoom ratio with only one actuation input without compromising the optical resolution and miniaturization nature of the adaptive imaging system. It also eliminates the need for displacing or replacing solid optical elements for changing the optical magnification. The project will result in a prototype of personal whole slide imaging device with a composite elastomer-liquid zoom lens. This personal whole slide imaging device has the following unique features: the two liquid lenses within the composite zoom lens can be actuated simultaneously and synchronously; only one actuation unit is needed for driving the composite zoom lens; and the dimension of the device is substantially smaller than the currently used imaging systems in digital pathology. These features provide the advantages of making digital pathology affordable, accessible and easy-to-operate when compared to the leading competing digital pathology systems and other whole imaging devices using solid optical elements in this market space.This project addresses the following technology gaps as it translates from research discovery toward commercial application. The use of composite elastomer-liquid zoom lens greatly simplifies the optical configuration and the overall size of the imaging system. This makes it possible to have the imaging device be portable and work smoothly with mobile personal devices (smartphones and tablets). To ensure that sufficient optical resolution can be reached, the thickness profiles of the vari-thickness elastomer membranes to be used in the liquid lenses will be investigated through iterative optomechanical simulation and experimental validation. This will generate new knowledge to advance the use of elastomer-liquid lenses for many high quality imaging applications. Besides the optical performance, the device also leverages the mobile devices' unparalleled capability of instant sharing for efficient transmission of whole slide pathological images. Given the prevalence of mobile devices, their increasing processing and transmission speeds, and the versatility of mobile apps, the personal whole slide imaging device with liquid lenses is expected to serve as a valuable solution of digital pathology for enhancing research and clinical outcomes. In addition, personnel involved in this project including graduate, undergraduate, and K-12 students will receive innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology translation experiences through the interactions with potential customers, the co-creation workshop and the comprehensive mentoring by engineering scientists, pathologists, and business educators.