This is a long week for those of us “all in” at BiOS and Photonics West, but though it’s not even halfway over, I can already tell it won’t be long enough for me to see all that I want to.
This is a long week for those of us “all in” at BiOS and Photonics West, but though it’s not even halfway over, I can already tell it won’t be long enough for me to see all that I want to.
I spent much of today in the Lasers and Photonics Marketplace seminar, wherein leaders of the greater optics and photonics industry reported and forecasted market outcomes, and discussed important developments. Laser Focus World chief editor Steve Anderson predicted that when all the 2008 numbers are in, the biomedical therapy market will reveal a decline of ~5% from 2007 levels, and 2009 figures will decline a bit further to $477 million in sales.
I also got to talk a bit with Claude Boccara of LLTech (Paris, France) following his presentation on an imaging approach his company calls “full field OCT.” It is unusual in that instead of imaging vertical “slices” of tissue (perpendicular to the probe) as do other optical coherence tomography scanners, LLTech’s “en face” approach images horizontally (parallel to the probe). While this inherently involves a limited depth of field, the approach is able to image a larger area and promises better penetration. The system combines the layers to produce the same kind of image cube that traditional OCT systems do—and lets you step through the cube by peeling away vertical slices. LLTech plans to launch its system commercially in 2010.
Oh, and I reported only one of the presentations at Saturday night’s Hot Topics session—so let me fill you in on another: Kishan Dholakia of the University of St. Andrews (U.K.) discussed photoporation (also called optical injection or transfection) of exogenous DNA into a cell, saying it is “set to become a mainstay in microscopy,” thanks especially to “novel light beams and optical technology and control.” Thanks, that is, to beam shaping.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
First dispatch from BiOS/PW '09
Introducing the “hot topics” session tonight at SPIE’s BiOS event, Dr. Rox Anderson noted that the BiOS conference is now nearing half the size of Photonics West!
Introducing the “hot topics” session tonight at SPIE’s BiOS event, Dr. Rox Anderson noted that the BiOS conference is now nearing half the size of Photonics West!
The session itself began with Dr. Stefan Hell demonstrating how his Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscope breaks the diffraction barrier to achieve super-resolution imaging (28X greater than confocal, down to 8 nm) within living neurons, for instance—and record at 28 frames per second. Wow.
In the exhibit hall I found a couple of vendors claiming unique capabilities. For instance, Innolume says its quantum dot technology exploits wavelengths that nobody else touches--in the 1120 - 1210 nm range (actually Innolume covers a wider spread--1064 - 1320 nm--but other companies have offerings at either end of that range). Another, Translume, is using lasers to produce glass waveguides and other microstructures such as microfluidic channels.
Michelson Diagnostics demonstrated its handheld OCT probe for imaging skin. The company is targeting non-opthalmic applications, and in fact plans to attend or exhibit at dermatology events in 2009.
Kapteyn Murnane Laboratories (KMLabs for short), which develops low-cost ultrafast amplifier systems to compete with some of the larger developers, said it shortly plans to introduce a new device about half the size of its current systems.
More soon--stay tuned!
Introducing the “hot topics” session tonight at SPIE’s BiOS event, Dr. Rox Anderson noted that the BiOS conference is now nearing half the size of Photonics West!
The session itself began with Dr. Stefan Hell demonstrating how his Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscope breaks the diffraction barrier to achieve super-resolution imaging (28X greater than confocal, down to 8 nm) within living neurons, for instance—and record at 28 frames per second. Wow.
In the exhibit hall I found a couple of vendors claiming unique capabilities. For instance, Innolume says its quantum dot technology exploits wavelengths that nobody else touches--in the 1120 - 1210 nm range (actually Innolume covers a wider spread--1064 - 1320 nm--but other companies have offerings at either end of that range). Another, Translume, is using lasers to produce glass waveguides and other microstructures such as microfluidic channels.
Michelson Diagnostics demonstrated its handheld OCT probe for imaging skin. The company is targeting non-opthalmic applications, and in fact plans to attend or exhibit at dermatology events in 2009.
Kapteyn Murnane Laboratories (KMLabs for short), which develops low-cost ultrafast amplifier systems to compete with some of the larger developers, said it shortly plans to introduce a new device about half the size of its current systems.
More soon--stay tuned!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
My BiOS/PW jogging route includes…
The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:
The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:
Fianium (booth 8132) will demonstrate its recently announced supercontinuum fiber lasers, the first to use the company's new proprietary high performance photonic crystal fiber (PCF) design, developed in partnership with the University of Bath (Bath, England). The technology promises key advantages over traditional supercontinuum techniques.
Michelson Diagnostics’ (booth 8731) will demo its prototype hand-held OCT probe, based on multi-beam technology. The company plans to launch “more than one variant” of the new probe later in 2009, including a dermal version (with X-Y scanning, to enable 3D mapping of skin lesions) and a version equipped with a rigid endoscope, suitable for oral applications. The company will apply for a CE mark for the product this spring, and then file an FDA 510(k) application.
Of course the larger Photonics West event (exhibits open Tuesday, January 27) will feature plenty of companies targeting bio-optics applications, too. For instance Cal Sensors (booth 6234) will introduce LIRA-5S, a lead selenide thermal imaging array that combines sensitivity in a wider wavelength range with integrated electronics. The device can be programmed for use in a wide variety of high-speed thermal imaging applications.
And Inno-Spec GmbH (booth 1801) will introduce a mid-infrared (MIR) compact line-array spectrometer with sensitivity in the 1-3 micron wavelength region that is less expensive than competing technologies.
The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:
Fianium (booth 8132) will demonstrate its recently announced supercontinuum fiber lasers, the first to use the company's new proprietary high performance photonic crystal fiber (PCF) design, developed in partnership with the University of Bath (Bath, England). The technology promises key advantages over traditional supercontinuum techniques.
Michelson Diagnostics’ (booth 8731) will demo its prototype hand-held OCT probe, based on multi-beam technology. The company plans to launch “more than one variant” of the new probe later in 2009, including a dermal version (with X-Y scanning, to enable 3D mapping of skin lesions) and a version equipped with a rigid endoscope, suitable for oral applications. The company will apply for a CE mark for the product this spring, and then file an FDA 510(k) application.
Of course the larger Photonics West event (exhibits open Tuesday, January 27) will feature plenty of companies targeting bio-optics applications, too. For instance Cal Sensors (booth 6234) will introduce LIRA-5S, a lead selenide thermal imaging array that combines sensitivity in a wider wavelength range with integrated electronics. The device can be programmed for use in a wide variety of high-speed thermal imaging applications.
And Inno-Spec GmbH (booth 1801) will introduce a mid-infrared (MIR) compact line-array spectrometer with sensitivity in the 1-3 micron wavelength region that is less expensive than competing technologies.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
It's bad, but not all bad
Yes, it's bad out there. But it's not all bad.
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
Yes, it's bad out there. But it's not all bad.
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
But on the up side, aesthetic laser company Cynosure bucked the trend with 21% growth in Q3 revenues. More good news: Strategic Directions International notes that handheld and portable molecular spectroscopy should see “very strong growth for the foreseeable future." This week, cardiovascular OCT systems developer LightLab discussed a similarly positive outlook, while AngioDynamics, Inc., which this summer acquired Diomed, reported net sales for its fiscal second quarter were up 17% over the $41.5 million reported in Q2 a year ago.
The January issue of Laser Focus World quotes Phil Crowley of MarketTech, a laser distribution, sales, and service company, as saying, “With a vast majority of our laser business in biotech, we haven’t seen a slowdown yet.” He said he is “encouraged that higher power levels, broader wavelength range offerings, smaller packages, and price reductions can result in further penetration of lasers into many biomedical instruments for DNA sequencing and disease analysis, flow cytometry, and microscopy.”
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
Yes, it's bad out there. But it's not all bad.
Laser vision correction doesn't yet show signs of recovery; the eye-surgery market research firm Market Scope predicts the segment will finish 2008 with a 17% drop. And the aesthetics sector is similarly struggling: Candela reported revenues down 24.2% in its first fiscal quarter from $35.5 million in the comparable prior-year period; Cutera’s Q3 2008 results were well below management's guidance and the consensus estimates, and Syneron reported revenues for Q3 2008 of $28.5 million, down from $33.1 million in Q3 2007 (even though the company’s international sales rose 17% year over year).
But on the up side, aesthetic laser company Cynosure bucked the trend with 21% growth in Q3 revenues. More good news: Strategic Directions International notes that handheld and portable molecular spectroscopy should see “very strong growth for the foreseeable future." This week, cardiovascular OCT systems developer LightLab discussed a similarly positive outlook, while AngioDynamics, Inc., which this summer acquired Diomed, reported net sales for its fiscal second quarter were up 17% over the $41.5 million reported in Q2 a year ago.
The January issue of Laser Focus World quotes Phil Crowley of MarketTech, a laser distribution, sales, and service company, as saying, “With a vast majority of our laser business in biotech, we haven’t seen a slowdown yet.” He said he is “encouraged that higher power levels, broader wavelength range offerings, smaller packages, and price reductions can result in further penetration of lasers into many biomedical instruments for DNA sequencing and disease analysis, flow cytometry, and microscopy.”
Friday, December 12, 2008
Neuroscience loves biooptics!
Normally, perusing the conference program is a good way to tell whether a trade show is a good match for your interests. If your interests are in biooptics and biophotonics, though, looking at the Neuroscience 2008 (Washington, DC, November 15-19) program would not have been a reliable indicator of relevance. There was nary a mention of technologies in the session descriptions—but the show floor was positively bursting with photonics and optics companies, both component suppliers and instrumentation vendors. That’s certainly not true of all biomedical industry events, so I was pleasantly surprised.
Normally, perusing the conference program is a good way to tell whether a trade show is a good match for your interests. If your interests are in biooptics, though, looking at the Neuroscience 2008 (Washington, DC, November 15-19) program would not have been a reliable indicator of relevance. There was nary a mention of technologies in the session descriptions—but the show floor was positively bursting with photonics and optics companies, both component suppliers and instrumentation vendors. That’s certainly not true of all biomedical industry events, so I was pleasantly surprised.
My picks for show highlights:
Lockheed Martin Aculight, which promoted its Capella infrared nerve stimulator.
Olympus showcased its FSX100 Bio Imaging Navigator all-in-one microscope system among other products that address both ends of the microscopy spectrum and cater to either the high-end user or novice microscopists.
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging made a splash by announcing four new fluorescence imaging systems, saying these additions make its family of optical sectioning microscopes the largest on the market. Zeiss also used Neuroscience 2008 to launch an educational website in collaboration with Florida State University, which intends to be a "comprehensive and independent resource to learn about the latest techniques in fluorescence imaging."
Both Zeiss and Visage Imaging showcased software working on autostereoscopic (meaning no need for red-and-blue glasses or other eyewear/headgear!) interactive 3D displays by Tridelity, which uses a parallax barrier to produce a two-view, head-tracked display for single-viewer systems or a multiview display that supports multiple viewers.
And Nikon and Thorlabs announced their collaboration to bring optical coherence tomography (OCT) to Nikon's FN1 "PhysioStation" microscope system for neurophysiology and in vivo, small-animal studies.
More information:
Tridelity
Normally, perusing the conference program is a good way to tell whether a trade show is a good match for your interests. If your interests are in biooptics, though, looking at the Neuroscience 2008 (Washington, DC, November 15-19) program would not have been a reliable indicator of relevance. There was nary a mention of technologies in the session descriptions—but the show floor was positively bursting with photonics and optics companies, both component suppliers and instrumentation vendors. That’s certainly not true of all biomedical industry events, so I was pleasantly surprised.
My picks for show highlights:
Lockheed Martin Aculight, which promoted its Capella infrared nerve stimulator.
Olympus showcased its FSX100 Bio Imaging Navigator all-in-one microscope system among other products that address both ends of the microscopy spectrum and cater to either the high-end user or novice microscopists.
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging made a splash by announcing four new fluorescence imaging systems, saying these additions make its family of optical sectioning microscopes the largest on the market. Zeiss also used Neuroscience 2008 to launch an educational website in collaboration with Florida State University, which intends to be a "comprehensive and independent resource to learn about the latest techniques in fluorescence imaging."
Both Zeiss and Visage Imaging showcased software working on autostereoscopic (meaning no need for red-and-blue glasses or other eyewear/headgear!) interactive 3D displays by Tridelity, which uses a parallax barrier to produce a two-view, head-tracked display for single-viewer systems or a multiview display that supports multiple viewers.
And Nikon and Thorlabs announced their collaboration to bring optical coherence tomography (OCT) to Nikon's FN1 "PhysioStation" microscope system for neurophysiology and in vivo, small-animal studies.
More information:
Tridelity
Friday, November 21, 2008
OCT at AAO: faster, broader
At the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting 2008, which concluded last week in Atlanta, optical coherence tomography (OCT) was well represented both in the conference program (with several sessions dedicated to the topic and several more touching on it) and in the exhibit hall. Bioptigen, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Heidelberg, OPKO, Optopol, Optovue, and Topcon all exhibited -- most with large booths. Canon joined the OCT crowd too, demonstrating the use of its technology with Optopol's OCT system, so Optopol got double the exposure with Canon’s exhibit. Nidek wasn’t talking about its rumored OCT offering, but I’m guessing that company will release a system within a year. Of course the exhibitors emphasized eye care, but there was talk among some of OCT for other disciplines, including non-biomedical applications such as manufacturing.
At the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting 2008, which concluded last week in Atlanta, optical coherence tomography (OCT) was well represented both in the conference program (with several sessions dedicated to the topic and several more touching on it) and in the exhibit hall. Bioptigen, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Heidelberg, OPKO, Optopol, Optovue, and Topcon all exhibited -- most with large booths. Canon joined the OCT crowd too, demonstrating the use of its technology with Optopol's OCT system, so Optopol got double the exposure with Canon’s exhibit. Nidek wasn’t talking about its rumored OCT offering, but I’m guessing that company will release a system within a year. Of course the exhibitors emphasized eye care, but there was talk among some of OCT for other disciplines, including non-biomedical applications such as manufacturing.
A 2-1/2 hour OCT session that required additional payment drew an audience of more than 200. When the moderator asked how many attendees currently have OCT systems, most raised their hands—and about 25% indicated they own spectral domain (Fourier domain) OCT systems. Not surprisingly, most of the attendees are focused on retinal applications, but about 15% or so use OCT for corneal work.
An overview of OCT emphasized the speed difference between the older time domain systems and the new breed of spectral/Fourier domain units -- but it was noted that the real bottleneck these days for OCT is computer processing time. That’s why last week’s announcement by Texas Instruments is so exciting; TI’s new embedded processors specifically target medical imaging.
At the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting 2008, which concluded last week in Atlanta, optical coherence tomography (OCT) was well represented both in the conference program (with several sessions dedicated to the topic and several more touching on it) and in the exhibit hall. Bioptigen, Carl Zeiss Meditec, Heidelberg, OPKO, Optopol, Optovue, and Topcon all exhibited -- most with large booths. Canon joined the OCT crowd too, demonstrating the use of its technology with Optopol's OCT system, so Optopol got double the exposure with Canon’s exhibit. Nidek wasn’t talking about its rumored OCT offering, but I’m guessing that company will release a system within a year. Of course the exhibitors emphasized eye care, but there was talk among some of OCT for other disciplines, including non-biomedical applications such as manufacturing.
A 2-1/2 hour OCT session that required additional payment drew an audience of more than 200. When the moderator asked how many attendees currently have OCT systems, most raised their hands—and about 25% indicated they own spectral domain (Fourier domain) OCT systems. Not surprisingly, most of the attendees are focused on retinal applications, but about 15% or so use OCT for corneal work.
An overview of OCT emphasized the speed difference between the older time domain systems and the new breed of spectral/Fourier domain units -- but it was noted that the real bottleneck these days for OCT is computer processing time. That’s why last week’s announcement by Texas Instruments is so exciting; TI’s new embedded processors specifically target medical imaging.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Barraquer Award presented during excimer laser 25th anniversary
It’s been 25 years since the first clinical application of the excimer laser to correct astigmatism, and the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) is marking the milestone today with a special “25th Anniversary of the Excimer Laser” symposium during its 2008 annual meeting in Atlanta (November 7-12).
It’s been 25 years since the first clinical application of the excimer laser to correct astigmatism, and the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) is marking the milestone today with a special “25th Anniversary of the Excimer Laser” symposium during its 2008 annual meeting in Atlanta (November 7-12).
The symposium, actually a joint meeting of the AAO’s International Society of Refractive Surgery (ISRS/AAO) and the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS), will feature Steven Trokel MD, who patented the excimer laser for vision correction in 1983, and other instrumental figures describing progression of the hardware, algorithms, and procedures—from the beginning through the future.
The symposium will conclude with the Barraquer Lecture, “Corneal surgery is refractive surgery,” given by the 2007 winner of the annual Barraquer Award Medal, Roger F Steinert MD -- and then presentation of the 2008 medal. The award, named for Jose Ignacio Barraquer (1916-1998), the inventor of refractive keratoplasty in 1949.
The 2008 winner is Jorge L. Alió, MD, PhD, Profesor and Chairman of Ophthalmology at Miguel Hernández University (Alicante, Spain).
More information
American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting 2008
It’s been 25 years since the first clinical application of the excimer laser to correct astigmatism, and the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) is marking the milestone today with a special “25th Anniversary of the Excimer Laser” symposium during its 2008 annual meeting in Atlanta (November 7-12).
The symposium, actually a joint meeting of the AAO’s International Society of Refractive Surgery (ISRS/AAO) and the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS), will feature Steven Trokel MD, who patented the excimer laser for vision correction in 1983, and other instrumental figures describing progression of the hardware, algorithms, and procedures—from the beginning through the future.
The symposium will conclude with the Barraquer Lecture, “Corneal surgery is refractive surgery,” given by the 2007 winner of the annual Barraquer Award Medal, Roger F Steinert MD -- and then presentation of the 2008 medal. The award, named for Jose Ignacio Barraquer (1916-1998), the inventor of refractive keratoplasty in 1949.
The 2008 winner is Jorge L. Alió, MD, PhD, Profesor and Chairman of Ophthalmology at Miguel Hernández University (Alicante, Spain).
More information
American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting 2008
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