Google patents eye scan that spots diabetes from front-of-eye photos
Google has been granted a patent for a system that uses machine learning to analyze photos of the front of a patient's eye. The software looks for signs of eye conditions or broader health issues, such as diabetes, without needing to examine the back of the eye.
In the filing’s own words
The present disclosure is directed to systems and methods that leverage machine learning for detection of eye or non-eye (e.g., systemic) diseases from external anterior eye images. In particular, a computing system can include and use one or more machine-learned disease detection models to provide disease predictions for a patient based on external anterior eye images of the patient. Specifically, in some example implementations, a computing system can obtain one or more external images that depict an anterior portion of an eye of a patient. The computing system can process the one or more external images with the one or more machine-learned disease detection models to generate a disease prediction for the patient relative to one or more diseases, including, as examples, diseases which present manifestations in a posterior of the eye (e.g., diabetic retinopathy) or systemic diseases (e.g., poorly controlled diabetes).
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A computing system for detection of diseases from external anterior eye images, the computing system comprising: one or more processors; and one or more non-transitory computer-readable media that collectively store: one or more machine-learned disease detection models configured to provide disease predictions based on external anterior eye images; and instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing system to perform operations, the operations comprising: obtaining one or more external images that depict an anterior portion of an eye of a patient; processing the one or more external images with the one or more machine-learned disease detection models to generate a disease prediction for the patient relative to one or more diseases, wherein the one or more diseases comprise one or more disease manifestations in the eye, and wherein the one or more disease manifestations in the eye comprise one or more disease manifestations in a fundus of the eye; and providing the disease prediction for the patient relative to the one or more diseases as an output.
Facts
- Company
- Google (Google LLC)
- Official title
- Machine learning for detection of diseases from external anterior eye images
- Patent number
- US12737879B2
- Application number
- 18011597
- Filed
- Nov 2, 2021
- Granted
- Sep 15, 2026
- Inventors
- 7
- Claims
- 29
Classified under
G06T 7/0012 Physics & computingA61B 3/1241 Human necessitiesG16H 30/40 Physics & computingG16H 50/50 Physics & computingG06T 2207/20081 Physics & computingG06T 2207/20084 Physics & computingMore from Google in Health & body
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.