In This Industry, Innovation’s No Optical Illusion!

Many people don’t realize just how innovative the field of optics is. Yet if you’re a regular wearer of glasses or contact lenses, optics can do wonders for your visual well-being. Here are three up-and-coming innovations that hold out great promise for improved quality of life. 

Real-time correction thanks to connected progressive lenses

An Israeli company had the brilliant idea of integrating a transparent layer of liquid crystals into glasses lenses. With the aid of sensors, it measures eye movements and calculates pupil distance in real time. The data is used to estimate the distance between the eye and a fixed object, then adapt correction accordingly without compromising optical quality and causing distortion.

This type of lens could help progressive lens wearers adapt to their glasses more swiftly.

Source: Acuité

A treatment for the most common cause of blindness

Scientists have recently tested a revolutionary stem cell therapy that has allowed the first two patients to recover enough vision to be able to read, despite the fact that they were both losing their sight. They had developed age-related macular degeneration, also known as (AMD). This is a disease that destroys central vision and can lead to blindness.

According to researchers, this surgery could be broadly available in as few as five years. They anticipate that it could become as common as cataract surgery.

Source: The Guardian

Photochromic contact lenses

You’re probably familiar with Transitions lenses, whose tint adapts to ambient light in real time, reducing strain on the eyes and affording continuous protection from UV rays. This technology could soon be available for contact lenses! Johnson & Johnson is developing a contact lens with a dynamic photochromic filter that will continuously regulate the amount of light that reaches the eye. Depending on variations in lighting, this contact lens rapidly adjusts from clear to dark, reducing the eye’s exposure to bright light both indoors and outdoors, while filtering harmful blue light and blocking UV rays. Will you be the first to try them?

Source: Vision Monday

It goes without saying that the world of optics still has many surprises in store for the years to come! Consult your Opto Réseau eye care professional to stay up to date on new technologies that can simplify your daily life or suit your lifestyle.