Blink And Zoom In

Scientists at the University of California San Diego have created a contact lens that zooms on the user’s command. The ‘zooming in’ process will be controlled by the eye movements. The lens created will be able to change its focal length depending on the signal generated by the user. As per the research, if the user blinks twice, the lens will zoom in up to 32 percent, focusing the particular object user is aiming.

For creating a soft biometric lens that responds directly to the electric impulses, scientists measured the electrooculography signals that are used to investigate the eye movement and achieved the desired result. The working of the lens would not depend on the eyesight of the users but the electric signals. Instead of organic tissue, this lens is made up of electroactive polymer films. There will be wires in the lens which will deliver electricity from the external stimuli resulting in the expansion or contraction of the layers of the lens. In both ways, the focal point of the light which is passing through the contact lens gets altered, bringing the object in focus.

More amazing scientific advances: "Scientists at the University of California San Diego have… created a contact lens, controlled by eye movements, that can zoom in if you blink twice." https://t.co/ZD2fmWlvdw

— Amber Mac (@ambermac) July 30, 2019

These lenses can mimic how the natural lens present inside the human eye works. Till date lenses used to have restricted use for correcting a particular eyesight related issue. With the introduction of these lenses, any eyesight issues could be solved.

Scientists are aiming to use these lenses in visual prostheses, adjustable glasses, and remotely operated robotics in the future.

Currently, it is just a prototype on which continuous work is going on. It will take years of refinement before introducing these lenses for human use, but it definitely is a big development in the Human Machine interfaces (HMI), that is gaining huge attention across the robotic industries.