Year: 2004-05

Company: UVP

Liaison(s): Sean Gallagher

The last twenty-five years have witnessed unprecedented progress in medical imaging technologies in areas such as ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), positron emission tomography (PET), and optical imaging. Many of these technologies are focused on structural or anatomical imaging of organs or tissues. Opportunities now exist for the development of in vivo molecular imaging technologies that would provide information at the cellular and molecular level. For this type of imaging, shadowless uniform illumination of irregularly shaped convex objects must be obtained. UVP, Inc. is interested in developing a light source of variable intensity and wavelength capable of uniformly illuminating a variety of convex three-dimensional objects. The project accordingly consists of a major engineering component as well as biological and business components. The team consists of students from KGI and Harvey Mudd College. For the engineering component, the team has developed and constructed several lighting systems capable of uniform illumination with a variety of light wavelengths and intensities. Using developed novel testing metrics for analyzing the systems, the light uniformity output were compared. The biological component involved obtaining two established collaborators in the field of plant sciences and facility for mice experimentation of systems and generating relevant datasets. The business component involved a thorough analysis of the business segments, market value, applications and potential competitors for optical in vivo imaging. The team has also successfully submitted this project outline for a possible SBIR grant opportunity.