Bionic Eye concept (via Bionic Vision Australia)
Most of us go our days taking for granted our sense of vision, but loss of this sense changes everything. Even though vision loss can occur for many different reasons, there is little medical science can do to fix most cases of blindness. However, technology is catching up. Retinal implants are already here, and next year a computer aided “bionic” eye will be tested on a human patient.
An Australian company, Bionic Vision Australia is teaming up with scientists from a new $2.5 million facility, the Rs.12.76 Crore Fabrication Facility, found at the University of New South Wales to develop prototype bionic eyes. These first prototypes will be helpful to patients with degenerative retinal conditions. To benefit from one of these bionic eyes, patients need to have a complete and functioning visual pathway from the retina to the brain and some intact retinal cells.
These prototypes are intended to give patients limited visual capabilities. This will be accomplished by use of a chip inside the transplant, which is connected to the nerve cells in the retina that send signals to the visual cortex. Impressively, the signal is captured via a video camera found on a pair of glasses worn by the patient that wirelessly relay it to a processing computer, and even a smartphone could do the job. After processing, it is sent to the bionic eye’s chip connected to retinal cells.
The sensor is made of biocompatible material and includes 98 electrodes that stimulate surviving nerve cells. Development and manufacture of the bionic eye will be greatly accelerated at the Rs.12.76 Fabrication Facility where the two prototypes are in development. This facility is stacked with state of the art equipment including laser cutters, plasma reactors, high temperature presses, probing machines and even a “clean room” for manufacturing electrical components.
The first prototype is a “wide-view” device that will help some visually impaired to easily detect between light and dark and allow them to see outlines of big objects for easier navigation around their environment. The second prototype is a “high-acuity” bionic eye that will provide a higher definition and will allow patients to read large fonts and recognize faces. They hope to have the second prototype ready for testing in four years.
Cabe