Eye Safety Standards Research Articles

The forgotten protection factor: A nationwide score-based assessment of motorcycle eye protection legislation

Introduction: Motorcycle accidents cause millions of deaths and injuries globally. It is estimated that billions of dollars would be saved in the United States alone if safety equipment, such as helmets and eye protection, was ubiquitously worn. Legislation concerning eye protection specifically is understudied and poorly characterized. Method: We reviewed all motorcycle-related safety equipment laws in all 50 states of the United States for information regarding eye protection. We graded the rigor of each statute using our six-category Eye Safety Metric and performed a comparative analysis of statutes across all jurisdictions. Results: Fourteen states did not have any statutes regarding eye protection. Among states that did, 23 states had weak statutes (0–2 points), 20 states had moderately stringent statutes (3–4 points), and 7 states had strong statutes (5–6 points). States in western United States tended to have less strict eye protection laws. Twenty-six states had eye protection exemptions for windshields, which are a poor form of eye protection. Six states that had universal helmet laws had no laws requiring eye protection. Conclusions: We characterized eye protection legislation across the country and found great diversity in the stringency of laws across all jurisdictions. Despite only two states lacking helmet laws, we found that 14 states lacked eye protection laws. These findings from our Eye Safety Metric can be used as a springboard for future research, which can be used to determine the need for and significance of eye safety legislation for motorcyclists and to inform legislative decision-making. Practical Applications: With this research, we hope to further the understanding of legislation regarding eye protection for motorcyclists and help policymakers identify states that need improved eye safety standards.

Filamentation in Atmospheric Air with Tunable 1100\u20132400\u2009nm Near-Infrared Femtosecond Laser Source

Intense femtosecond pulse filamentation in open-air has been utilized for long distance optical communication and remote sensing, but it results in nonlinear-effect driven eye hazards which are not addressed by current eye safety standards. A systematic study of filamentation in atmospheric air was performed using a tunable 100 fs near-infrared laser (1100 nm–2400 nm). While undergoing filamentation, each source wavelength was spectrally broadened resulting in supercontinuum and third harmonic generation in the visible and near-IR spectrum. We record the spectra at the center and fringes of the supercontinuum as it is imaged onto a planar surface. In a full beam collection regime, we report the energy of the sub-1000 nm light generation for source wavelengths from 1100 nm to 1600 nm and compare the energy density to the maximum permissible exposure values under the ANSI Z136.1 laser safety standard.

15 Gbit/s indoor optical wireless systems employing fast adaptation and imaging reception in a realistic environment

Optical wireless systems are promising candidates for next-generation indoor communication networks. Optical wireless technology offers freedom from spectrum regulations and, compared to current radio-frequency networks, higher data rates and increased security. This paper presents a fast adaptation method for multibeam angle and delay adaptation systems and a new spot-diffusing geometry, and also considers restrictions needed for complying with eye safety regulations. The fast adaptation algorithm reduces the computational load required to reconfigure the transmitter in the case of transmitter and/or receiver mobility. The beam clustering approach enables the transmitter to assign power to spots within the pixel's field of view (FOV) and increases the number of such spots. Thus, if the power per spot is restricted to comply with eye safety standards, the new approach, in which more spots are visible within the FOV of the pixel, leads to enhanced signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Simulation results demonstrate that the techniques proposed in this paper lead to SNR improvements that enable reliable operation at data rates as high as 15Gbit/s. These results are based on simulation and not on actual measurements or experiments.

Impact of rurality on optical health: review of the literature and relevant Australian Bureau of Statistics data

Rurality is associated with a number of direct and indirect causes of eye disease. The direct causes are best described as lifestyle factors, such as exposure to UV light and occupational risks. Indirect factors are those where the occurrence of a predisposition is magnified due to rural population distributions, for example gender and age. Research into rurality and optical health is limited, so definitive increases in the prevalence of vision disease are difficult to ascertain. Furthermore, establishing the need for additional optometrists in rural areas has been mixed in the literature. The current review addresses the relationship between rurality and optical health and suggests an increase in available optometrists in rural areas. Age is the single largest correlate of vision disease, with an increase in age over 40 years correlating significantly with a range of vision diseases. Rural New South Wales (NSW) Australian areas contain a higher proportion of 'older' residents than urban equivalents. Gender is also a correlate of vision disease, although the phenomenon is more complex than for age. Rural NSW populations contain a higher ratio of men to women than do urban areas, which is significant. Rural residents are exposed to higher levels of UV radiation than their urban counterparts, increasing the prevalence of pterygium. Rural residents experience higher levels of occupational eye injury and may have less stringent eye safety standards. The interaction between vision and hearing loss can accentuate occupational safety vulnerability and general living difficulties. Rural communities experience higher levels of noise-induced hearing loss. Rural communities experience higher levels of certain eye disease and may be exposed to an increased risk from indirect factors such as age, gender and private health insurance ownership. Rural communities may have lower access to optometrists and this review suggests increasing the number of optometrists in rural Australia. The amount of research conducted on factors associated with rurality and optical health should be increased.

Conversion of aesthetic lasers and intense pulsed light sources into inherently eye‐safe units

BACKGROUND: Laser systems used in aesthetic treatments pose a serious risk to the eyes of bystanders and equipment operators. Although much safer than lasers, intense pulsed light (IPL) sources are also not without risk.OBJECTIVE: To present a technology that can convert most lasers and IPL units used in aesthetic clinics into inherently eye‐safe devices not requiring the use of protective eyeglasses, thus making them Class I devices. With the exception of Q‐switched lasers, this new technology also dramatically reduces the potential hazards of lasers that do not attain Class I level to below that attributed to flashlamps. A device that eliminates the annoying glare generated by the reflection of pulsed light from the skin is also presented.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The new eye‐safe technology is based on the attachment of a highly efficient wide‐angle forward scattering optical diffuser to the distal end of the laser delivery handpiece. This device is used in contact with the treated area without modification of the conventional treatment parameters and preserves clinical efficacy. The handpiece is designed to act as an eye‐safe, extended diffusing light source complying with Class I eye safety standards in most laser types. The technology also makes IPL devices safer by reducing the radiance of the flashlamp, which is hazardous when viewed directly by operators or bystanders. Skin glare is also eliminated by a liquid crystal, glare‐free window activated in synchronization with the treatment pulses.RESULTS: Clinical hair removal results with an 80 degree diffuser did not reveal any difference when compared with results obtained with the original laser source. The incorporation of a diffuser in an IPL unit has not modified its clinical efficacy.CONCLUSION: With the exclusion of Q‐switched lasers, it is possible to convert a large number of lasers and IPL units utilized in aesthetic treatments into inherently eye‐safe units, thereby considerably enhancing the comfort and safety of aesthetic clinics without sacrificing clinical efficacy.

A New Model for Laser-induced Thermal Damage in the Retina

We describe a new model for laser-induced retinal damage. Our treatment is prompted by the failure of the traditional approach to accurately describe the image size dependence of laser-induced retinal injuries and by a recently reported study which demonstrated that laser injuries to the retina might not appear for up to 48 h post exposure. We propose that at threshold a short-duration, laser-induced, temperature rise melts the membrane of the melanosomes found in the pigmented retinal epithelial cells. This results in the generation of free radicals which initiate a slow chain reaction. If more than a critical number of radicals are generated then cell death may occur at a time much later than the return of the retina to body temperature. We show that the equations consequent upon this mechanism result in a good fit to the recent image size data although more detailed experimental data for rate constants of elementary reactions is still required. This paper contributes to the current understanding of damage mechanisms in the retina and may facilitate the development of new treatments to mitigate laser injuries to the eye. The work will also help minimize the need for further animal experimentation to set laser eye safety standards.

Eye Safety Analysis of Scanning Beam Displays

AbstractScanning beam displays use a light source to project video image directly on the retina of the eye, producing a bright, high‐resolution picture. These displays can be used in either occluded or see‐through mode in any applications where a conventional displays; e.g. cathode ray tube CRT would presently be used. Depending on the luminance required by the applications, different types of light sources can be used in the system. For occluded applications light‐emitting diodes LEDs can be used and for see‐through applications usually a laser is used. This paper analyzes the effects of the scanned beam on the retina compared to eye safety standards in place. Analysis for displays designed for military and consumer markets are presented.

Problems Encountered in Determining an Eye Safety Standard for Daily Exposures to Optical Radiation

Existing eye safety standards are not suitable for specifying safety limits to which individuals are exposed on a daily basis. A possible approach to this problem is to relate safety limits to radiation doses found in nature. Although this method produces extremely conservative safety limits, it greatly reduces the possibility of temporary lesions encountered within existing guidelines.