We are living in a smart age where the majority of devices
and machines that we use are more smarter than the majority of the people using
them. If we have smartphones, smart LEDs, smart cars, smart cards, even smart
mirrors, so why not smart contact lenses. That’s right you are not mistaken,
smart contact lenses. It might sound like something from a science-fiction
movie but they are actually real and many companies are working continuously to
develop one. There are some available in the market as well. We have come far
from just colored contact lenses and circle lenses. So when you hear people say
that you would be able to auto-focus on objects, click pictures and record
images by just blinking, and can have a digital vision like Ironman, they are
actually stating the truth.
Top companies like Sony, Google, Samsung, and many other
organizations like the US Department of Defence, University of Michigan,
Columbia University, Swiss Federated Institute of Technology, Novartis, and
Medella are in a race to develop a more holistic and composed smart contact
lens.
The race of wearable tech is on the rise and it seems to be
going high without the fear of any demise. All of the above-mentioned companies
and many other technology giants are trying to win the race, so we will see a
smart contact lens in the recent future.
How smart contact
lenses work?
Different companies are developing different types of
contact lenses each with a different purpose and different way of using them.
You might not have heard about the company Verily, a subdivision un Alphabet,
was a part of Google. They are the fastest company that is developing smart
contact lenses. They have designed a contact lens that is injected into the
eye. The natural lens of the eye is replaced with the smart one. They inject a
fluid in the eye that fuses with the lens of the eye as it solidifies these smart
lenses consist of storage, battery, sensor, and other electrical elements. All
of the companies are trying to develop lenses that can be worn in the same way
as other common contact lenses. The power to the contact lens can be provided
by two methods, solar power and by the blinking of the eyelids.
How they
revolutionized the vision?
The applications of smart contact lenses are enormous from
simple vision enhancements to military applications. But the main purpose is
still the focused vision. The University of Wisconsin has invented a contact
lens with auto-focus ability. The lens has the ability to focus on an object
within milliseconds inspired by the elephant nose fish. The contact lens
comprises a light sensor, a solar cell to power, and an electrical circuit for
connectivity. When the eye tries to focus on some object the sensor is
triggered which then in response transmits an electrical signal to the lens to
focus on the desired object. This lens can focus on objects within a fraction
of the second to treat hyperopia.
The University of Michigan is working with the US military
to develop contact lenses that can see in the dark. They are using a single
layer of carbon atom called grapheme to pick the full spectrum of light,
enabling US soldiers to see in the dark.
Rowan University and Auburn University are developing a pair
of contact lenses that can deliver medicine to the eyes eradicating the need to
use eye drops. They are set for human trials this year. Sony is working on
contact lenses that can record video by blinking the eye. The sensor in the
lens can distinguish between a normal and a deliberate blink and store the
video in the built memory.
Samsung, on the other hand, is working to develop a contact
lens version of Google glass.
So it’s not wrong to say that the future of contact lenses
is bright.
Reference by:
https://williamprince10.livejournal.com/989.html