Digital imaging processing and diagnostic system and methods for automatically recognizing ocular diseases including dry eye disease (DED), and other ocular conditions in the eyes of humans by automatically (i) processing 2D in vivo digital images of the human eyes formed, captured and detected using a visible-wavelength operating digital camera system, and (ii) using machine-vision image processing subsystems (e.g. engines) to automatically detect the presence and location of specific objects in the ocular surfaces in the human eye, and confirm that specific conditions have been satisfied during image processing to support automated recognition of a specific ocular disease and other ocular conditions indicative of ocular pathology.