Australian Scientists Create Bionic Eye Prototype
The blind could possibly see once again in three years.
Bionic Vision Australia has developed the first prototype of a bionic eye that could restore rudimentary vision to blind people by 2013. But unlike the Six Million Dollar Man, recipients won't get to zoom in on evil plots from afar. Instead, the imagery the device currently produces is blocky and low-res at best. Still, anything is better than nothing, and probably beats seeing with your tongue as we reported earlier.
The bionic eye is comprised of several parts: a pair of glasses with a mounted camera, a processor, and the ocular implant. The glasses record footage and pass along the imagery to the processor seated in the user's pocket. The processor then sends the wireless data to the implant mounted against the user's retina. The implant thus stimulates the surviving retinal neurons electronically-- these neurons send the visual information to the brain.
"We anticipate that this retinal implant will provide users with increased mobility and independence, and that future versions of the implant will eventually allow recipients to recognize faces and read large print," said Professor Anthony Burkitt, Research Director of Bionic Vision Australia and Professor of Engineering at the University of Melbourne.
Gizmag expands on the story and details how the entire process works. The site reports that the overall problem is not in getting the signal to the brain, but to improve the resolution and detail of that signal. While the advanced first prototype can produce rough imagery for unaided navigation, the group wants to fine-tune the technology so that face and emotion recognition is a possibility in the next prototype-- 20/80 vision at the very least-- in 2013.
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Still a long way off but they're slowly getting closer to an effective artificial eye, improved a helluva lot since some of the original designs.
This is amazing. Going blind is my greatest fear. I'd rather die.
By 2015... maybe I won't have to be afraid anymore.
This is amazing. Going blind is my greatest fear. I'd rather die.By 2015... maybe I won't have to be afraid anymore.
Spending big $$ for a few pixels via invasive brain surgery isn't exactly a "no worry" scenario.
One more step to becoming an android ... awesomeness, wonder what this tech will be like in fifty years
this reminds me of that woman who had something similar done a few years ago. It sort of works but the implant doesnt give them sight as we know it it lets them see a set of pixels 4x4 that are either white or black. So they can see the sun if they are looking right at it but its a full white flash. They were saying on the science channel that the scientist who invented the idea had plans to go to a 64x64matrix that also did color but that was much further in the future. The woman who got the implant is now screwed because the implant started having problems and the doctor got in trouble for implanting it (he was in like sweden or austria) so he wont help her with another operation to fix his frankenstinish work.
a first step is a first step.
least it wont look like this.
http://drewjustice.files.wordpress [...] burton.jpg
This is amazing. Going blind is my greatest fear. I'd rather die.By 2015... maybe I won't have to be afraid anymore.
My cousin's friend is blind and uses Facebook all the time.. had some type of interface. He say's it's the best thing that has happened to him. He has completely changed his lifestyle around spiritually and says he can hear and smell things he has never before. Doesn't sound all that bad! Who knows.. maybe he will see again.
.... soon u can play crisis
One more step to becoming an android ... awesomeness, wonder what this tech will be like in fifty years
Nano-physics/science WILL be the future.
Spending big $$ for a few pixels via invasive brain surgery isn't exactly a "no worry" scenario.
Vision is priceless. What good is money and lifestyle without the ability to see?
Vision is priceless. What good is money and lifestyle without the ability to see?
yea, what else would you spend your money on? radios? scent candles? now you can watch HDTV or play crysis at an amazing 16i resolution!
but seriously, i am sure it would be nice to not rely on a dog or stick to move around. i would get it if i was blind.
"Spending big $$ for a few pixels via invasive brain surgery isn't exactly a "no worry" scenario."
Not big $$ if your country has universal healthcare!
It's the borg!! Quick shoot him before he adapts!!
Not big $$ if your country has universal healthcare!
Yep, just big waiting times.
cool! I hope it glows red!
so the camera is in some glasses, which transmits to the processor in your pocket, which transmits to your eye sockets? thats awesome! please tell me its wireless! you could put the glasses anywhere!
"Spending big $$ for a few pixels via invasive brain surgery isn't exactly a "no worry" scenario."Not big $$ if your country has universal healthcare!
Yay Canada!
My left eye seems to be slowing getting worse (decent for now still), so I like this idea. =D
I remember watching a documentary on something like this a couple years back. The picture was absolutely horrible (you could tell the difference between the ground and the sky, not much more).
This is amazing. Going blind is my greatest fear. I'd rather die.By 2015... maybe I won't have to be afraid anymore.
...I second that!
this is exactly what my teacher's brother does for a living. very interesting walking into their refridgerator to find it's full of eyeballs @_@
Are school administrators allowed to take snapshots every 5 minutes if they don't know where that person is because they had to use the restroom?
Cyberpunk 2020 coming in!
Give them time to develop and refine the technology.
won't somebody please think about all the dogs that will loose their jobs!
Don't mess with the brain... don't mess with it, as you are not God.
But if it works, then good for you.
I wonder if by 2020 we all will be replacing our inborn eyes with some high tech, which you can use as a telescope, microscope, with HUD of course and GPS.
Just imagine walking up to a store and looking at hundred of different eye balls with price tags AHAHAHAH Jesus eeeeh
then someone hacks into your eye and transmits midget donkey porn!
ive been blind in 1 eye since birth, so im VERY interested in this. probably costs 2x my annual income though.
and with 20/40 vision, you can pass the CA DMV eye test!
There's a cochlear implant - the well-developed equivalent for the ear - in my family. Works beatifully; the wearer is a straight-A student at a regular school. Some advances in technology seem to be all upside.
PLEASE,clear me how retinal implant is different from bionic eye? is this same,then how