Augmented Reality contact lenses in the works

Contact lenses sure are turning out to be more than just replacements for spectacles. Previously we reported about lenses that can be used to secrete medication into wearers, and now some scientists have figured out a new way to make use of them. Imagine walking around with a heads up display like the ones you get in first person shooters, or seeing what The Terminator sees – numbers, data, pictures and everything you need to know – overlaid on everything you see.

Well in future, contact lenses might do just that. At the moment a team of US/Finnish researchers have managed to come up with contact lenses that can display a single pixel. Sure it’s a long way off from fully functional displays we’re all thinking of but it is proof of concept that it’s possible. The lens consists of an antenna to harvest power that is sent out by an external source, and has an integrated circuit to store the energy and transfer it to a transparent sapphire chip containing a single blue LED.

A lot more work needs to be done but it looks like we’re headed on the right track. Would you be interested in information displayed on your contact lenses?

George Wong
Categories: Gadgets
Tags: contact lens