PROMOTED: Optics for Ophthalmic Applications: Methods and Examples for Successful Product Development

Successfully and efficiently turning ideas into innovative products requires dedicated engineering activities related to manufacturability throughout the development process. This is even more true for optical systems and technology-driven devices for medical applications.

Waechter discusses key considerations in the development process for optical systems in this talk, and she illustrates two examples of optics used in ophthalmic applications. The first example is the design and manufacturing of a diffractive optical element (DOE) for an active intraocular lens implant. The second is the design of a MEMS scanning mirror for a retina examination device. In both cases, a risk-driven approach and a good understanding of the manufacturing options from the beginning were crucial for a successful design.

About the presenter
Helen Waechter, Ph.D., leads the optics development team at Helbling. She is responsible for providing innovation and engineering services for customer projects involving optics and photonics. She has more than 17 years of experience in developing optical systems and devices for various areas, including medical technology, industry, and research. Before joining Helbling in 2017, she was a postdoc at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, and a senior scientist and intellectual property and technology partnerships manager at Tiger Optics in Pennsylvania. Waechter is a graduate in physics and holds a doctorate in laser spectroscopy from ETH Zürich.