What is claimed is:
1. A method of correcting refractive errors in an eye of a subject mammal, comprising:
selecting a pharmaceutically acceptable corneal hardening agent on the basis of its being able to harden the cornea in said eye of said subject mammal without causing damage to said cornea;
administering to said eye of said subject mammal a corneal hardening amount of said agent so that said cornea can be reshaped from a first configuration to a desired second configuration;
fitting said cornea with a rigid contact lens having a concave curvature of said desired second configuration;
permitting said cornea to reshape to said desired second configuration under the influence of said lens; and
removing said lens when said cornea is capable of maintaining said desired second configuration without the support of said lens.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein said refractive error is selected from the group consisting of myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein said agent is a cross linker.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein said cross linker is an aldehyde.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein said aldehyde is selected from the group consisting of acetaldehyde, glyceraldehyde, phenylacetaldehyde, valeraldehyde, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetaldehyde, mutarotational isomers of aldehydes, ascorbic acid and dehydroascorbic acid.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein said agent is an enzyme.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein said enzyme mediates cross linking reactions.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein said enzyme is lysyl oxidase or prolyl oxidase.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein said agent is administered by injection into the eye.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein said agent is administered by topical administration into the eye in the form of eye drops.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein said agent is administered by means of a contact lens.
12. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of administering to said eye a corneal softening amount of a pharmaceutically acceptable corneal softening agent sufficient to soften the cornea of said eye so that said cornea can be reshaped.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein said corneal softening agent is an enzyme that degrades proteoglycans in said cornea.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein said proteoglycan degrading enzyme is hyaluronidase.
15. A kit for performing refractive corrections in an eye of a subject mammal, comprising:
a corneal hardening agent in unit dosage form; and
a rigid corrective lens having a desired concave structure.
16. A reaction mixture comprising:
an eye of a subject mammal;
a corneal hardening agent in unit dosage form; and
a rigid corrective lens having a desired concave structure.
17. A method of rehabilitating corneal irregularity and correcting refractive error in an eye of a subject mammal with irregular corneal shape, comprising:
identifying a subject with irregular corneal shape;
selecting a pharmaceutically acceptable corneal hardening agent on the basis of its being able to harden the cornea in said eye of said subject without causing damage to said cornea;
administering to said eye of said subject a corneal hardening amount of said agent so that said cornea can be reshaped from a first configuration to a desired second configuration;
fitting said cornea with a rigid contact lens having a concave curvature of said desired second configuration;
permitting said cornea to reshape to said desired second configuration under the influence of said lens; and
removing said lens when said cornea is capable of maintaining said desired second configuration without the support of said lens.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein said subject is identified by diagnosing said subject as having a condition selected from the group consisting of: keratoconus, contact lens induced corneal warpage, contact lens intolerance, corneal ulcers, corneal melting disorders, recurrent corneal erosions, pterygium, and irregular corneal shape or uncorrected refractive error due to corneal surgery.
19. A method of improving the clinical success of surgery to the eye involving the manipulation of a cornea of a subject mammal, comprising the steps of:
identifying a subject who has undergone a corneal manipulation;
selecting a pharmaceutically acceptable corneal hardening agent on the basis of its being able to harden the cornea in said eye of said subject without causing damage to said cornea;
administering to said eye of said subject a corneal hardening amount of said agent so that said cornea can be reshaped from a first configuration to a desired second configuration;
fitting said cornea with a rigid contact lens having a concave curvature of said desired second configuration;
permitting said cornea to reshape to said desired second configuration under the influence of said lens; and
removing said lens when said cornea is capable of maintaining said desired second configuration without the support of said lens.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein said corneal manipulation is selected from the group consisting of radial keratotomy, photorefractive keratectomy, LASIK, thermokeratoplasty, photothermokeratoplasty, corneal transplant surgery, cataract surgery, and corneal reshaping by laser.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A refrigerator comprising:
a compressor to compress a refrigerant;
a condenser to condense the refrigerant passed through the compressor;
a capillary tube that lowers a temperature and pressure of the refrigerant passed through the condenser;
an evaporator to evaporate the refrigerant passed through the capillary tube;
a thermal storage device for auxiliary cooling that undergoes heat exchange with the refrigerant to store thermal energy;
an energy management device that receives electric rate information; and
a controller configured to control the compressor based on the electric rate information received at the energy management device,
wherein the controller controls the thermal storage device to store thermal energy and the compressor to operate when the electric rate information is below a prescribed amount, such that a refrigerating chamber and a freezing chamber become cool by cooling of the compressor,
wherein the controller controls the thermal storage device to provide auxiliary cooling and the compressor not to operate when a temperature of the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber becomes higher than a specific temperature and the electric rate information is above or equal to the prescribed amount, such that the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber become cool by cooling of the thermal storage device,
wherein the compressor cools the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber while the thermal storage device does not cool the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber, and
wherein the thermal storage device cools the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber while the compressor does not cool the refrigerating chamber and the freezing chamber.
2. The refrigerator of claim 1, further comprising a second refrigerant that undergoes heat exchange with the thermal storage unit to provide auxiliary cooling, wherein the controller controls a flow of the second refrigerant based on the electric rate information received at the energy management device.
3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the controller restricts flow of the second refrigerant when the electric rate information is below the prescribed amount.
4. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the thermal storage device is coupled to an outlet of the evaporator.
5. The refrigerator of claim 4, further comprising a heat exchanger coupled to the thermal storage device by a guide pipe through which the second refrigerant circulates between the thermal storage device and the heat exchanger.
6. The refrigerator of claim 5, further comprising a valve provided at the guide pipe to control a flow of the second refrigerant, wherein the thermal storage device, the heat exchanger, the guide pipe and the valve forms a thermosyphon through which the second refrigerant flows by convection.
7. The refrigerator of claim 4, wherein an induction pipe is provided for the second refrigerant to circulate between the thermal storage device and the evaporator.
8. The refrigerator of claim 2, further comprising a valve coupled to an outlet of the condenser and configured to change a flow path of the refrigerant between a first path and a second path, wherein the capillary tube is positioned in the first path, and a second capillary tube and the thermal storage device are positioned in the second path.
9. The refrigerator of claim 1, further comprising a valve configured to change a path of the first refrigerant, wherein the controller controls the valve based on electric rate information received from the energy management device.
10. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the controller controls the valve to route the first refrigerant to provide auxiliary cooling using the thermal storage device when electric rates are above a first prescribed amount, or to route the first refrigerant to store thermal energy in the thermal storage device when electric rates are below a second prescribed amount.
11. The refrigerator of claim 9, further comprising a second capillary tube that lowers the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant flowing from the valve, wherein the capillary tube is coupled to a first outlet of the valve and the second capillary tube is coupled to a second outlet of the valve.
12. The refrigerator of claim 11, wherein the refrigerant having passed through the second capillary tube and the refrigerant having passed through the evaporator are mixed or controlled to individually flow, and guided to the thermal storage device.
13. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the valve is coupled to an output of the evaporator, a first outlet of the valve coupled to the thermal storage device and a second outlet of the valve coupled to a bypass tube.
14. The refrigerator of claim 13, wherein the bypass tube is disposed in parallel with the thermal storage device with respect to a circulation direction of the refrigerant.
15. The refrigerator of claim 9, wherein the valve is positioned to receive refrigerant from the condenser, and the capillary tube is coupled to a first outlet of the valve, and a second capillary tube and the thermal storage device are coupled to a second outlet of the valve.
16. The refrigerator of claim 15, wherein the thermal storage device is disposed in parallel with the evaporator with respect to a circulation direction of the refrigerant.