JP2006526760A - Laser autopsy and cremation - Google Patents

Abstract

Laser cremation and autopsy methods and instruments. One or more laser beams are used to destroy at least a substantial portion of a dead human or animal corpse. The destruction of corpses can occur in a part-by-part manner. In the embodiment used for cremation, almost all of the corpse, including soft tissue, body fluids, and bones, is vaporized or destroyed. In embodiments used for autopsy, the internal organs and / or anatomy are examined as a whole, and photographs or images can be taken between some or all parts. Such photographs or images can be analyzed for evidence of cause of death or compared to normal parameters to ascertain whether an abnormality is present. The gas or vapor resulting from laser destruction of the cadaver can be filtered, heated to remove the pathogen, and / or analyzed to determine the presence or amount of a particular chemical analyte.

Description

  The present invention relates generally to a method and apparatus for performing autopsy or cremation of a cadaver as a human or animal specimen. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and apparatus in which a laser is used to cremate or perform autopsy on a dead human or animal carcass.

(A. Cremation)
Cremation is the second most common form of human corpse disposal in the United States and is even most common in certain other countries or regions of the world. Typically, any large metal or mechanical device, such as a prosthesis, pacemaker, and hearing aid, must be removed from the corpse prior to cremation. After the corpse is prepared, the corpse is placed in a combustible urn or container, and the urn or container is then placed in a cremation heating furnace, sometimes referred to as a cremation furnace.

  A cremation furnace typically consists of a closed chamber having a burner and a hearth or morgue on which the corpse is placed. Burners are typically ignited by combustible fuels such as natural gas. Once the burner is activated, the temperature in the chamber rises to about 1600-2000 degrees Fahrenheit (872-1109 degrees Celsius). This high heat results in the thermal decomposition of all or most of the cadaveric soft tissue, leaving mainly bone fragments as a solid residue. Contrary to popular belief, soft tissue cremation causes little or no “ash”. Depending on the specific cremation furnace used, cremation of an average size adult corpse takes 80-120 minutes. When the cremation is complete and the solid residue is cooled, the solid residue is mechanically crushed into small particles and stored in an urn or container.

  The release of pollutants to the environment is a concern with the cremation process. In order to minimize the release of pollutants into the air, some cremation furnaces use a two-stage method. In these two-stage cremation furnaces, the casket or container containing the body is first placed in the first chamber, where the casket or container is placed by the main burner in the presence of only a small amount of air so as to cause reduction combustion. Heated. Thereafter, the embers are transferred from the first chamber to the afterburner chamber. In the afterburner chamber, the afterburner heats the embers in the presence of more air (ie, more oxygen) to cause oxidative combustion.

  Some examples of prior art cremation furnaces are described in Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2, Patent Document 3, Patent Document 4, and Patent Document 5, the entire disclosures of each of which are expressly incorporated herein by reference. Incorporated.

An autopsy is an examination of the body of a dead human. The purpose of autopsy is to answer questions about the person's illness or the cause, manner or mechanism of death. In addition, autopsy provides valuable information that helps doctors save others' lives. The autopsy is performed by a specially trained doctor called a pathologist.
B. Autopsy Autopsy is essentially an examination of a dead human corpse aimed at answering questions about the cause of the person's illness or death. Autopsy can also provide valuable information to help doctors save others' lives. In a typical autopsy, a pathologist is a visual inspection of a cadaver that is first performed to discover clues or evidence about the cause and situation of death. Next, the pathologist makes an incision in the cadaver and performs an internal examination to examine the internal organs. Certain organs are typically removed, weighed, and a sample of organ tissue is taken for later microscopic examination. Samples or tissues and / or body fluids are also typically collected for chemical and / or toxicological analysis.

Various procedures and procedures were established to perform the internal examination part of the autopsy. The procedure or procedure used for internal inspection is not as usual and is a variation of the four basic methods. These four basic methods are: a) Virchow, where organs are removed one by one and later examined, and b) groups in which the organs are anatomically or functionally related (ie, “collectively” Ghon's method, which is removed (by the procedure), c) Lettle method, where the contents of the thoracic cavity and abdominal cavity are removed together (ie, the “chunk” procedure), and d) the organ is incised and examined in situ Rokitansky method.
US Pat. No. 6,474,251 US Pat. No. 5,526,757 US Pat. No. 5,104,630 U.S. Pat. No. 4,603,644 U.S. Pat. No. 4,401,038

  Using conventional techniques, a normal autopsy takes about 2-4 hours to complete in the autopsy room. Microscopic, chemical, and toxicological analysis can take several more days. It is highly desirable that the autopsy be performed in a manner that does not interfere with subsequent burial or cremation.

(Outline of the present invention)
The present invention provides a laser-based method and apparatus for cremation and / or autopsy of human or animal corpses. When the present invention is used for cremation, laser energy is applied to the body of the dead in a manner to cremate the corpse. When the present invention is used for autopsy, the desired body structure can be examined and / or photographed or otherwise imaged or scanned (eg, multiphoton microscope, fluorescence scanning, etc.) As such, laser energy is applied to the corpse in such a manner as to expose the desired body structure (eg, organ, joint, muscle, body cavity, etc.).

In accordance with the present invention, a laser cremation or autopsy device is provided. Such an apparatus comprises a chamber in which a corpse is placed and one or more laser oscillators that emit a laser beam onto the corpse to vaporize or otherwise destroy the corpse. In some embodiments, the laser can vaporize or substantially destroy both soft tissue and bone so that substantially the entire corpse is reduced to vapor or gas by-products. Incombustible liquid vapor, mist or mist vapor, or gas (eg, moisture, nitrogen) is placed in the chamber to cool the process and promote laser vaporization rather than soft tissue and / or bone combustion or pyrolysis It can also be supplied. Lasers are also used to remove continuous portions or slices of tissue. Any type of laser suitable for this purpose can be used. In some embodiments, multiple different types of lasers can be used simultaneously or in successive stages to destroy different types of tissue. For example, each part or flake of a cadaver can be vaporized or destroyed in a three-step procedure. First, in the first stage, a relatively low power output such as a pulsed diode laser (eg, Corona Model 532-75 diode pumped Q-switched green laser, Coherent, Inc., 5100 Patrick Henery Dr., Snta Clara, CA 95054). Lasers are used to vaporize or destroy low density soft tissues such as skin, subcutaneous fat, and body fluids contained therein. Then, in a second stage, a CO ₂ laser (eg K500 diamond CO ₂ laser, manufactured by Coherent, Inc., 5100 Patrick Henery Dr., Snta Clara, CA 95054) set to a medium power setting, etc. A medium power laser is used to vaporize or destroy medium density tissue such as muscles and ligaments. Thereafter, the third stage is a CO ₂ laser set at a high power setting (eg, K500 diamond CO ₂ laser, manufactured by Coherent, Inc., 5100, for vaporizing or destroying high density tissues such as bone and residual tissue. Patrick
Henery Dr., Snta Clara, CA 95054) can optionally be implemented. Against laser-induced carbonation or ash production from bone or other tissue during at least some parts, such as all of the procedure or during each third phase of the step procedure summarized above. Thus, an appropriate liquid vapor or mist (eg, water vapor) may be introduced into the chamber to facilitate laser vaporization of bone or other tissue. The laser is preferably raised to a tissue temperature that is high enough (eg, at least about 275 ° F.) to kill any pathogens that may be present (bacteria, viruses, bacterial spores, prions, etc.). Optionally, vapor and / or gas emissions from the chamber pass through the afterburner, where they are heated or burned to ensure complete destruction of the tissue and all pathogens contained therein. Alternatively or additionally, the vapor and / or gas evacuation from the chamber is passed through a trap or filter device where all or substantially all vapor or other residues of tissue destruction by the laser are captured.

  Further in accordance with the present invention, a photographic or imaging device for capturing cadaver videotapes, photos, or other images is provided on or in a laser device so that a cadaver photo or recorded image is obtained during the procedure. Or can be used in connection with a laser device. When the present invention is used to perform a complete or partial autopsy, the laser can remove portions or slices of cadaver tissue, and after each portion or slice is removed, or after corpses organs and body structures. A photograph or imaging device can be used at a desired interval (eg, every 5 slices or every inch) for viewing and evaluation (eg, measurements, color measurements, etc.). In some embodiments, the photograph or image obtained in this way can be compared to a normal photograph or image and the data form extracted from such photograph or image (eg, of the dimensions of an organ). Measurements, specific tissue color measurements) relate to photographs or images of normal body structures and / or normal body structures to be examined for the presence of pathological conditions, malformations or pathological conditions It can be compared to data (eg, normal dimensional range of organs, normal tissue color, etc.). In some embodiments, a photo or image file can be generated in digital form or converted to digital form, and then normal body structure and / or normal body structure Is sent to a computer programmed to make a desired comparison with the data on.

  Further in accordance with the present invention, one or more detectors or analyzers can be attached to the chamber to detect or perform quantitative or qualitative analysis of vapor and / or gas emissions from the chamber. This aspect of the invention is particularly useful in embodiments where a laser device is used to perform a full or partial autopsy.

Further in accordance with the present invention, one or more of the devices summarized above for laser cremation or autopsy are movable platforms or laser cremation and / or autopsy devices that can be moved from one location to another. It may be placed or mounted on or in a vehicle (eg, trailer, bus, bus-like vehicle, aircraft, boat, hovercraft, helicopter, etc.). Such embodiments of the present invention may be usable to perform cremation and / or autopsy at remote or rural locations and / or sites of disasters, epidemics, or other situations where humans or animals have died. As described herein, the laser cremation and autopsy device of the present invention can be used to perform autopsy and / or cremation without potentially releasing toxic or pathogens to the environment. Thus, the above movable embodiments of the present invention are pathogenic substances or organisms (eg viruses, bacteria, bacteria, spores, prions etc.) or toxic substances (nerve gas, cyanide, carcinogen, mutagenesis) Particularly convenient for performing autopsy and / or cremation of human or animal cadaver suspected of containing substances, teratogens, undesirable air, soil, groundwater, or substances known to cause environmental contamination Is good. In addition, since laser autopsy and cremation devices can cremate corpses more quickly than conventional cremation devices, their use can lead to situations where it is desired to cremate a large number of human or animal corpses at high speed (eg, (Sites of disasters such as earthquakes and infectious diseases) and / or situations where it is desirable to cremate large animal corpses at high speed (eg bovine spongiform encephalopathy or “mad cow disease” or other large animal disease) Especially in the cremation of a group of livestock).

  Further objects and aspects of the present invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reviewing the accompanying drawings and reading and understanding the detailed description that follows.

  The following detailed description and the drawings to which the description refers are set forth to illustrate and illustrate specific examples or embodiments of the invention, and are exhaustive of all possible embodiments or examples of the invention. Is not intended to be described or illustrated.

  While illustrative embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, many changes, modifications and substitutions can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. In particular, an element or attribute described in connection with an embodiment may not be used or intended for applications in which the inclusion or use of such element or attribute is intended for the embodiment in which it is incorporated. Can be used in combination with other embodiments as long as they are not undesirable. Accordingly, all such additions, deletions, modifications and changes to the embodiments described above are within the scope of the claims.

As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the apparatus and method of the present invention can exist in various embodiments. Examples of specific embodiments are illustrated in the accompanying FIGS.
FIGS. 1 and 2 show a first embodiment of a laser cremation and autopsy apparatus 10 including a housing 12 having an openable / closable lid 18 and a laser oscillation device 14. A dead corpse BOD is placed on the slab member 16 in the housing 12. The lid 18 is then closed so that a sealed chamber 13 is formed in the housing 18. The laser oscillation / target device 14 is mounted on a carriage 19 that moves back and forth (longitudinal direction indicated by an arrow A) on the rail member 20. The carriage 19 may comprise an electric motor that propels the carriage 19 along the rail member 20, or may utilize any suitable type of drive or propulsion mechanism including a pulley system or a magnetic drive. The rail member 20 is suspended under the closed lid 18 on the corpse BOD. The end of the rail member 20 is inserted into the slot 22 at any end of the chamber 13. Rail member 20 is propelled by a motor or other suitable drive system (not shown) to move left and right in the transverse direction (indicated by arrow B). In some embodiments, the slab member 16 is mounted on a hydraulic cylinder or some other suitable drive or propulsion means to further move the slab member 16 up and down in the vertical direction (indicated by arrow C). Can be connected to.

The laser oscillator 19 may comprise any suitable type of laser oscillator, such as a CO ₂ laser (eg, K500 diamond CO ₂ laser, manufactured by Coherent, Inc., 5100 Patrick Henery Dr., Snta Clara, CA 95054). Good. The output of the laser oscillator 14 can be adjusted in at least some embodiments of the present invention. The width and depth of the vaporization region vary depending on the laser intensity, focal depth, speed, target substance absorption rate, and the like. The diode laser beam used in the present invention is typically about 3 mm wide and the CO ₂ laser beam used in the present invention is typically about 11 mm wide, although other beam widths are possible, It can be used in the present invention. And speed of the beam movement, the type of tissue to be vaporized, density, depending on the composition, and about 1~3mm in the diode laser, vaporization depth of about 3~6mm in CO ₂ laser is expected. The power of the laser beam, the depth of focus of the laser beam, and / or the distance between the lasing device and the upper surface of the cadaver can be adjusted during the procedure to facilitate constant vaporization of various types of tissue. Typically, high density tissues such as ligaments, muscles and bones require higher power and closer positioning of the lasing device than less dense tissues such as skin or subcutaneous fat and body fluids.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the cadaver BOD is in a supine position on the slab 16 and the lasing and target device 14 is directed downwards so that the laser beam strikes the front surface of the corpse. In this manner, the laser beam vaporizes a certain amount of tissue of a specific width and depth at each location where the laser beam strikes the corpse. The carriage 19 carries the laser oscillating device 14 along the rail member 20, thereby causing the laser beam to vaporize the tissue of a straight section of a specific width and depth. In some embodiments, multiple longitudinal irradiations may be required to evaporate or vaporize the desired longitudinal section of tissue. For example, in order to destroy low-density tissue (for example, skin, subcutaneous fat, blood, etc.), a first irradiation is performed by the laser oscillation device 14 with a first output setting, and a medium-density tissue (for example, muscle) And the tendon), the second irradiation is performed by the laser oscillation device at a higher output setting than the first time, and the remaining tissue such as bone is destroyed by the laser oscillation device 14 at a higher output setting. The third irradiation is performed. Alternatively, instead of using different output settings for one laser oscillation device 14, a plurality of different laser oscillation devices can be used in sequence to accomplish the desired vaporization of the tissue in the straight section. After each linear section of tissue is vaporized, the rail member 22 is moved in the transverse direction by an amount approximately equal to the width of the vaporized tissue section. The procedure is then repeated multiple times until the entire transverse portion of the corpse has been vaporized by the laser or otherwise removed. Thereafter, the slab member 16 is lifted by a distance approximately equal to the depth of the removed cross section (or the slab 16 is maintained at the same height and adjusted by the laser depth of focus), and then Another transverse portion is removed by repeating the above-described adjusted operation of the laser oscillator 14 and the track member 20. However, in the removal of the second transverse portion of tissue, the track member 20 may be moved in a direction opposite to the direction moved during removal of the first portion. For example, if the track member 20 is moved from the front to the rear during vaporization of the first longitudinal portion, the track member 20 is moved from the rear to the front during vaporization of the second longitudinal portion. The entire procedure is then repeated many times to remove the continuous longitudinal portion of the cadaver BOD until substantially all the cadaver BOD has been vaporized by the laser.

  In order to complete the process in a controlled and automated manner, the longitudinal movement of the carriage 19 and the laser oscillator 14 on the track member 20 (arrow A), the transverse movement of the track member 20 and the incremental upward movement of the slab ( A programmable controller (eg, a microprocessor or computer) may be used to adjust and control the arrow C) (or a corresponding adjustment of the laser depth of focus).

  In examples used for autopsy, visual inspection of the organ and body structure should be performed at another point in the procedure if the desired body structure becomes visible even after removal of each longitudinal portion. Also good. During this part-by-step procedure, a camera or imaging device (not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) may be used to take pictures of organs or body structures that are exposed at various times. Such photographs or images can be examined globally for pathological signs or causes of death. Alternatively, the photo or image is a standard photo to confirm whether certain physical characteristics (eg organ size, color, etc.) are within normal limits or not, and whether certain pathological indicators are present It can be compared with normal parameters or scales of images, data files, and other pathologies. To facilitate such comparison, the photos or images may be digitized or otherwise created, converted or stored in a computer readable format, and then a computer (not shown in FIG. 1 or 2) It can be programmed and used to perform a desired comparison with normal parameters.

Of course, in embodiments used for necropsy purposes, the laser oscillator 14 is temporarily suspended during the laser vaporization procedure so that the pathologist can obtain a sample of tissue or fluid for subsequent tissue and / or other analysis. It is possible to stop and open the lid 18 one or more times.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, air and any vapor or gas by-products from the laser procedure are withdrawn or delivered from the chamber 13 through the outflow conduit 34. A propulsion device 32, such as a fan or pump, can draw air, steam, or other gases from the chamber 13 through the outflow conduit 34. An afterburner 30 may be provided in or before the outflow conduit 34 to heat or recombust air, steam, or gas exhausted from the chamber 13. The afterburner is present in the air, steam, and air present to a temperature high enough (eg, at least about 275 ° F.) to destroy any pathogens that may be present (eg, bacteria, viruses, prions, microbial spores). It is preferred to heat the gas. As shown in FIG. 1, an air intake conduit 26 is provided to allow air to enter the chamber 13 when air, vapor and gas are exhausted from the chamber 13 through the outflow conduit 34. Is possible. One or more filters or traps may also be installed on the outflow conduit 34 to filter or trap particles or chemicals. Examples of several types of filters or traps that can be used with embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in FIGS. In FIG. 9, a canister 54 filled with liquid is attached to the outflow conduit 34 so that air, vapor or gas exhausted from the chamber (before or after the optional afterburner 30) bubbles through the liquid. A relatively small amount of air bubbles are generated, thereby reducing the inflow of air, other gases and / or vapors to maximize the interfacial area between the air, gas and / or vapor and liquid in the canister. Sintered metal disks or other devices can be used to atomize or split. In FIG. 10, a housing 56 containing filter paper, padding or other filter material is mounted on the outflow conduit 34 such that air, gas and / or vapor passes through the filter material.

  1 and 2 illustrate a system in which a longitudinal portion of tissue is vaporized or removed from a cadaver by a part-by-part process, various other patterns of laser tissue vaporization or removal may be employed. For example, in some cases, the lasing device 14 and / or cadaver BOD may be moved to perform cadaver crossing, sagittal or diagonal removal. In other embodiments, particularly those that are used solely for cremation purposes, it may be undesirable or unnecessary to vaporize or remove tissue in a piece-wise or flake-like manner. Thus, in these circumstances, the laser oscillator 14, the laser beam itself, and / or the corpse may be moved in any suitable manner to perform substantially all desired vaporization or transpiration of the dead corpse. Or it can be adjusted.

  During at least some of the procedure, it may be desirable to introduce a liquid mist or vapor such as cryogenic water vapor into the chamber 13 through the outlet 28 to promote vaporization against tissue combustion or ashing. . The use of such a mist becomes particularly desirable during the part of the procedure where the laser is being used to vaporize dense tissue such as bone.

In some embodiments of the present invention, one or more laser autopsy / cremations so that the laser cremation and / or autopsy device and associated conduits, fans, filters, piping, etc. can be moved from one location to another. Device 10 and associated conduits, fans, filters, plumbing, etc. may be placed on or in a movable platform or vehicle (eg, trailer, bus, bus-like vehicle, aircraft, boat, hovercraft, helicopter, etc.) . For example, one or more laser autopsy and cremation devices 10 may be used in truck trailers, ships or boats, amphibious vehicles or aircraft (C-140 or other commonly used by military and / or national or civilian organizations). Can be mounted in or on an aircraft). In some cases where power is available at the location where the autopsy and / or cremation is scheduled, the mobile platform or vehicle may require a laser that is required for a specific autopsy and / or cremation procedure to be performed at that location. It can be adapted for connection to external sources or power sources as described above for operation of vacuum, lighting, cameras, analytical instruments, etc. Alternatively, if a power source is not available at that location, one or more generators, solar collector panels, batteries and / or other portable power sources may be installed on the movable platform or vehicle to provide the necessary electricity. Can be arranged. These mobile embodiments of the present invention can be moved to remote areas or regions and / or disasters, sites of infectious or infectious diseases, or other situations where humans or animals have died. For example, a laser cremation and autopsy device 10 mounted on a truck according to the present invention does not include a cemetery, a coroner's office, or any other cremation or autopsy facility on the spot, and / or a license to perform such procedures Can be moved to a place that has not been received. As another non-limiting example, the laser cremation and autopsy apparatus 10 according to the present invention is mounted on a truck, boat or aircraft and is a pathogenic substance or organism (eg, virus, bacteria, bacteria, spore, prion, etc.) or toxicity. Of humans or animals suspected of containing substances (nerve gases, cyanides, carcinogens, sudden displacement inducers, teratogens, substances known to cause undesirable air, soil, groundwater, or environmental pollution) The corpse is moved to the site of an infectious disease or other disaster where there is no need for transport of the corpse to another location, without the need for environmental contamination and cremation and / or autopsy personnel to potentially pathogenic and / or toxic substances. Such corpses can be necropsied in situ and / or cremation with minimal potential for exposure.

  The present invention has been described herein with reference to specific examples and examples, and no attempt has been made to exhaustively describe all possible examples or examples. Those skilled in the art will recognize that various additions, deletions, and modifications can be made to the specific examples and embodiments described herein without departing from the intended spirit and scope of the present invention.

1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a laser cremation or autopsy device. FIG. Sectional drawing which passes along the line 2 of FIG. The cutaway side view of the second embodiment of the laser cremation or autopsy device. FIG. 4 is a cutaway end view of the apparatus of FIG. 3. Cutaway side view of a third embodiment of a laser cremation or autopsy device. 6 is a schematic view of another laser guide track that can be used in connection with the apparatus of FIG. 6 is a schematic view of another laser guide track that can be used in connection with the apparatus of FIG. Cutaway side view of a fourth embodiment of a laser cremation or autopsy device. 1 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of an apparatus for filtering or cleaning the air or gas emission cremation or autopsy apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of an apparatus for filtering or cleaning air or gas emissions from either the cremation or autopsy apparatus of the present invention.

Claims (56)

A method of performing laser cremation and / or autopsy of a dead human or animal corpse comprising:
A. A method comprising applying laser energy to a cadaver so that the laser substantially destroys at least a substantial portion of the cadaver. Step A is a step of installing a corpse near the laser oscillation device,
2. The method of claim 1 comprising the step of causing the laser oscillator to oscillate the laser beam such that the laser beam destroys at least a substantial portion of the corpse. Step A provides a laser apparatus consisting of a substantially sealed chamber in which a cadaver can be installed and the laser apparatus can be used to emit a tissue disruption laser beam to a cadaver installed in the chamber. Process,
Placing the corpse in a substantially sealed chamber;
The method of claim 1, comprising using a laser device to fire a laser beam onto the corpse such that at least a substantial portion of the corpse is vaporized or otherwise destroyed by the laser beam. . B. The method of claim 1, further comprising recovering any solid, liquid, or gaseous residue remaining after laser destruction of at least a substantial portion of the dead body of step A. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein step B comprises passing air and any vapor through a recovery device from an area adjacent to the corpse for recovery of the residue. The method of claim 1, wherein the laser comprises a CO ₂ laser.   The method of claim 1, wherein step A comprises using a laser for part-by-part destruction of a substantial portion of the cadaver.   8. The method of claim 7, wherein the method is performed for the purpose of autopsying at least a portion of a cadaver target portion, wherein the thickness of each portion of the cadaver target portion is less than about 5 cm.   8. The method of claim 7, wherein the corpse is held substantially stationary and the laser beam is moved to cause part-by-part destruction of at least a substantial portion of the cadaver.   The method according to claim 7, wherein the laser beam is kept substantially stationary and the corpse is moved to cause at least a substantial portion of the corpse to be broken piece by piece.   8. A method according to claim 7, wherein both the corpse and the laser beam are moved to cause part-by-part destruction of at least a substantial part of the cadaver. B. The method of claim 1, further comprising obtaining a photograph or image or scan of the cadaver.   13. The method of claim 12, wherein the method is performed for necropsy and photographs or images are used to determine the cause of death or the presence of pathology within the cadaver. C. 14. The method of claim 13, comprising comparing the photograph or image with normal parameters to determine whether the body structure shown in the photograph or image is above.   Step C provides i) a computer programmed to compare the photo or image with normal parameters, and ii) converts the photo or image into a computer readable format or stores the photo or image in a computer readable format. Iii) send a computer-readable form of the photo or image to the computer, and iv) use the computer to compare the photo or image with normal parameters to determine if the body structure shown in the photo or image is abnormal 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the method is performed. B. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of passing air and any vapor through the afterburner device from the area adjacent to the corpse. B. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of passing air and any vapor through a filtration device from an area adjacent to the corpse. B. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of passing air and any vapor through a liquid trap device from an area adjacent to the corpse. The laser used in step A is made of a CO ₂ laser, the method according to claim 1.   The method of claim 1, wherein step A is performed using a single laser.   The first part of step A is performed using a laser with a first power setting, and the second part of step A is performed using a laser with a second power setting. The method described in 1.   The method of claim 1, wherein step A is performed using a plurality of lasers.   The method of claim 1, wherein step A is performed using at least two different types of lasers.   Step A is performed in a part-by-part manner, with each part of the cadaver having a first irradiation on the part of the corpse with a first laser beam and a second on the part of the corpse with a second laser beam. 24. The method of claim 23, wherein the method is substantially destroyed by a process comprising:   25. The method of claim 24, wherein the step of substantially destroying each portion of the corpse further comprises a third irradiation on the portion of the corpse with a third laser beam. The first irradiation is performed using a pulsed diode laser, the second irradiation is performed using a CO ₂ laser of a first output set value, and the third irradiation is more than the first output setting. is carried out with CO ₂ lasers high second power setting method according to claim 25.   The first irradiation substantially destroys at least any skin, subcutaneous fat, and body fluids contained in the part, and the second irradiation substantially destroys at least any muscles and ligaments contained in the part. 27. The method of claim 26, wherein the third irradiation substantially destroys any bone and remaining tissue contained in the portion. A laser device for cremation and / or autopsy of human or animal corpses,
A housing defining a sealed chamber therewith, the chamber being dimensioned and configured to allow a corpse to be disposed therein;
A laser device comprising: a laser oscillation device usable to emit a laser beam to a corpse so that at least a substantial part of the corpse is destroyed by the laser beam.   30. The device of claim 28, further comprising a device that moves or targets the laser beam relative to the corpse.   30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the apparatus for moving the laser beam comprises an apparatus for moving the laser oscillator such that the laser beam oscillated from the laser oscillator moves over at least a portion of the corpse.   30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the apparatus for moving the laser beam comprises a movable reflector that orients the laser beam such that the laser beam moves over at least a portion of the corpse.   30. The apparatus of claim 28, further comprising an apparatus for moving the corpse relative to the laser beam. A device to move the corpse,
29. The apparatus of claim 28, comprising an apparatus for moving the laser beam. 30. The apparatus of claim 28, further comprising an apparatus for removing vapor and gas from the chamber. 30. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising an apparatus for filtering any vapor or gas removed from the chamber. Filter device
A filter housing through which steam or gas is passed;
36. The apparatus of claim 35, comprising an amount of filter material disposed within the filter housing. 36. The device of claim 35, wherein the filter device comprises a volume of liquid in which vapor or gas bubbles. 29. The device of claim 28, further comprising a device for obtaining a photograph or image of a cadaver or a scan.   40. The device of claim 38, wherein the device for obtaining a photograph or image of a cadaver is adapted to obtain a photograph or image that can be used to determine the cause of death or the presence of a pathology within the cadaver. 40. The device of claim 38, further comprising a device that compares the cadaver photo or image with normal parameters to determine whether at least one body structure shown in the photo or image is abnormal. Step C, an apparatus for comparing a photograph or image with normal parameters,
41. The apparatus of claim 40, comprising a computer programmed to compare a photograph or image with normal parameters. A device that compares photos or images with normal parameters
A device that converts a photo or image into a computer-readable format or stores a photo or image in a computerized poison format; and
42. The device of claim 41, comprising a device for transmitting a photograph or image to a computer. To determine if at least one body structure shown in the photo or image is abnormal,
42. The apparatus of claim 41, wherein the computer is programmed to compare a cadaver picture or image with normal parameters. 29. The apparatus of claim 28, further comprising an afterburner apparatus through which gas or vapor from the chamber is passed.   45. The apparatus of claim 44, wherein the afterburner device functions to heat the vapor or gas to a temperature sufficiently high to kill any pathogen contained in the vapor or gas.   30. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the laser oscillator comprises a single laser oscillator.   A laser oscillator oscillates a first output laser beam to perform one part of the cremation or autopsy procedure, and then a second output laser to perform the next part of the cremation or autopsy procedure. 30. The apparatus of claim 28, adapted to oscillate a beam.   30. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the laser oscillation device comprises a plurality of laser oscillation devices.   29. The apparatus according to claim 28, wherein the plurality of laser oscillation devices comprises at least two different types of lasers.   The apparatus is adapted to cause a first laser emission on each part of the corpse by a first laser beam and a second laser emission on each part of the corpse by a second laser beam. 49. The apparatus according to 49.   51. The apparatus of claim 50, wherein the apparatus is adapted to cause a third laser emission on the portion of the corpse by a third laser beam. The first launch is performed using a pulsed diode laser, the second launch is performed using a CO ₂ laser with a first power setting, and the third launch is higher than the first power setting. 52. The apparatus of claim 51, implemented using a CO2 laser with a power setting of _two . i) the first firing substantially destroys at least any skin, subcutaneous fat, and body fluids contained in the part; ii) the second firing substantially comprises at least any muscles and ligaments contained in the part. 27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the laser is adapted and provided with power so that the third firing substantially destroys any bone and residual tissue contained therein. Step A is
Installing laser autopsy and cremation equipment on or in a mobile platform or vehicle;
A step of moving the mobile platform or vehicle to the location where the corpse to be autopsied or cremated is located, followed by a viewing and cremation device positioned on or within the mobile platform or vehicle to inspect or cremate the corpse The method according to claim 1, comprising the step of using.   29. Apparatus according to claim 28, wherein a laser device for cremation and / or autopsy is positioned on or within a mobile platform or vehicle. A mobile platform or vehicle
Cars,
Track,
With a trailer,
With bus,
With a boat,
With a ship,
Amphibious vehicles,
With hovercraft,
An aircraft,
With airplanes,
56. The apparatus of claim 55, selected from the group consisting of helicopters.

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