A high-throughput optofluidic device for detecting fluorescent droplets is disclosed. The device uses time-domain encoded optofluidics to detect a high rate of droplets passing through parallel microfluidic channels. A light source modulated with a minimally correlating maximum length sequences is used to illuminate the droplets as they pass through the microfluidic device. By correlating the resulting signal with the expected pattern, each pattern formed by passing droplets can be resolved to identify individual droplets.

An imaging system for measuring water and blood lipid content in a tissue sample includes a light source configured to emit a plurality of sequential wavelengths of light within a predetermined range of wavelengths, a spatial modulation device configured to direct each of the plurality of sequential wavelengths of light onto a tissue sample plane to generate a first plurality of patterns on the issue sample plane at a first spatial frequency and a second plurality of patterns on the tissue sample plane at a second spatial frequency, an imaging device configured to generate first image data reproducible as images the first plurality of patterns and second image data reproducible as images the second plurality of patterns, and a controller configured to determine a first optical property and a second optical property for each location on the sample plane.

The invention relates to a device (100) and a corresponding method for thermoacoustic sensing, in particular thermoacoustic imaging, the device (100) comprising: a) an irradiation unit (10) configured to generate electromagnetic and/or particle energy exhibiting a first modulation, the first modulation comprising at least one frequency and to continuously emit the energy towards a target (1), whereby acoustic waves are continuously generated in the target, the acoustic waves exhibiting a second modulation, the second modulation comprising the at least one frequency and/or a harmonic frequency of the at least one frequency; b) a detection unit (20) configured to simultaneously detect the acoustic waves exhibiting the second modulation while the energy exhibiting the first modulation is being continuously emitted towards the target (1); and c) a processing unit (30) configured to determine at least one thermoacoustic value of an amplitude and/or a phase of the second modulation of the acoustic waves at the at least one frequency and/or at a harmonic frequency of the at least one frequency. The invention allows for fast and economic thermoacoustic sensing, in particular imaging of a region of interest of an object.

Examples relate to a method, an apparatus and a computer program for detecting a presence of airborne particles. A reference measurement of an environment of a depth image sensor module is obtained. The reference measurement is based on a measurement of modulated light in a first time interval. The modulated light is reflected by features of the environment of the depth image sensor module. A subsequent measurement of modulated light is obtained in a second time interval. The presence of the airborne particles is detected based on the subsequent measurement of the modulated light, by using the reference measurement performed in the first time interval to disregard all or part of the features of the environment of the depth image sensor module. A signal indicative of one or more properties of the detected airborne particles is generated based on the detected presence of the airborne particles.

A method of data acquisition and image generation over a wide and dynamic time interval between surface scans using modified electrical waves is disclosed. It is also disclosed that generating altered electrical waveforms that drive a scanner using conventional waves such as sinusoidal or triangle or sawtooth can enhance the method. Systems for A-scan, B-scan, and C-scan imaging pp include surface scan setups using a one-dimensional and a two-dimensional scanner, respectively. Three different arrangements of conventional waves enable modified waveforms that drive scanners to produce a wide and dynamic interscans time interval on both the fast and slow scan axes. (i) At a constant peak-to-peak voltage, the instantaneous voltage of the electrical sinusoidal wave shifts in time with the amplitude of the electrical signal in the ramp waveform within a range. (ii) The frequency of a waveform continuously increases (up-chirp) as a function of time in the form of a positive ramp sawtooth or continuously decreases as a function of time in the form of a negative ramp sawtooth. (iii) The frequency of a waveform is modulated as a function of time in a 90-degree phase retarded sinusoidal form within a deviation range of the +/ peak frequency.

The invention relates to a portable device (1) for estimating at least one parameter characteristic of a polymer material, characterized in that the device comprises at least one infrared source (101), each infrared source (101) being capable of emitting towards the polymer material a spectral line, representing maximum emission energy, selected in one of the wavelengths 10 m, 9.5 m, 7.2 m, 6 m, 3.5 m, 2.7 m or in one of the wave numbers 1000 cm.sup.1, 1050 cm.sup.1, 1350 cm.sup.1, 1700 cm.sup.1, 2900 cm.sup.1, 3700 cm.sup.1, at least one infrared detector (102), capable of receiving infrared radiation (112), which is reflected by the polymer material (M) in response to the spectral line, a unit for determining the parameter characteristic of the polymer material (M) as a function of the energy present in said spectral line in the infrared radiation (112), having been reflected by the polymer material (M) and having been received by the infrared detector (102).

An imaging system for measuring water and blood lipid content in a tissue sample includes a light source configured to emit a plurality of sequential wavelengths of light within a predetermined range of wavelengths, a spatial modulation device configured to direct each of the plurality of sequential wavelengths of light onto a tissue sample plane to generate a first plurality of patterns on the issue sample plane at a first spatial frequency and a second plurality of patterns on the tissue sample plane at a second spatial frequency, an imaging device configured to generate first image data reproducible as images the first plurality of patterns and second image data reproducible as images the second plurality of patterns, and a controller configured to determine a first optical property and a second optical property for each location on the sample plane.

A sample observation device includes a light source unit configured to output a pulse train in which multiple optical pulses with different center wavelengths are arranged at predetermined time intervals as excitation light; a measurement unit configured to perform time-resolved measurement on an optical response that is transmitted from the sample and corresponds to irradiation with the optical pulses included in the pulse train while scanning the sample with the excitation light, and to acquire measurement data with respect to the optical pulses; and a processing unit configured to perform linear unmixing processing on the measurement data with respect to the optical pulses on the basis of an excitation spectrum for every target included in the sample.

A high-throughput optofluidic device for detecting fluorescent droplets is disclosed. The device uses time-domain encoded optofluidics to detect a high rate of droplets passing through parallel microfluidic channels. A light source modulated with a minimally correlating maximum length sequences is used to illuminate the droplets as they pass through the microfluidic device. By correlating the resulting signal with the expected pattern, each pattern formed by passing droplets can be resolved to identify individual droplets.

An optical processing head that detects a trouble of an optical processing head that will be generated at the time of optical processing before the trouble occurs is disclosed. The optical processing head that performs processing by condensing, on a process surface, a ray emitted by a light source for processing includes a cylindrical housing that surrounds a ray for processing emitted by the light source for processing, a ray emitter for inspection that is incorporated in the cylindrical housing and arranged outside the path of the ray for processing, and a light receiver that is incorporated in the cylindrical housing, arranged outside the path of the ray for processing, and receives a ray for inspection emitted by the ray emitter for inspection. The contamination of the inner surface of the cylindrical housing or the concentration of a scattering object flowing into the cylindrical housing is inspected by using a signal acquired from the light receiver.