Eykona Medical, a technology firm of the University of Oxford, U.K., has commercialized a 3D imaging system for clinical use that incorporates two individual cameras and four high-powered flash units.
Designed by Dr. Ron Daniel, PhD, of the department of engineering science, and Dr. James Paterson, the 3D imaging system uses specially designed software to measure size, depth, and skin tone at the submillimeter level and then creates a 3D image. The camera uses small sterile "targets" to set the focus and position of the camera, thus eliminating inconsistency between images.
Eykona rendering software enables the 3D model to be assessed from all angles. Images may be shared with other clinicians through server or cloud-based hosting.
The camera is currently being used by a small number of National Health Service (NHS) groups, and is expected to receive a national listing later this year, Eykona reported. It was field-tested and is currently being used by the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, which is using the device to help treat the wounds of soldiers in Afghanistan as well as mapping impacts on body armor to improve research and development.
The system, including software and a carrying case, costs less than 5,000 pounds (6,250 euros), and has very little ongoing maintenance cost, according to Eykona.
