Contact lenses with built-in sensors have been available from Mojo Vision, a California-based firm, as of 2015. You can use AR visuals in front of your eyes like smart glasses to help you with everyday chores. Once we have a working prototype, we are closer to seeing a finished product in the works.
A “feature-complete augmented reality smart contact lens” was demonstrated “on-eye” for the first time by Drew Perkins, CEO of Mojo Vision, in a blog post published this week. CNET interviewed him, and he revealed that he wears only one contact at a time for long periods of time. In the future, Mojo Vision wants customers to be able to wear two Mojo Lens at the same time and generate 3D visual overlays, according to the outlet.
His blog stated that the CEO could see through the contact and an on-screen prompter with a phrase printed on it; the compass was also visible. A monochrome photograph of Albert Einstein in green, on the other hand, he remembered seeing on CNET.
Micro LED display with 14,000 pixels per inch sits at the heart of the lens. It has a 1.8-micron pixel pitch and a diameter of only 0.02 inches (0.5 mm)… “The tiniest and densest display ever designed for dynamic content,” according to Perkins, is just that.
Perkins claimed that physics and electronics miniaturisation were key considerations in the development of the contact. Using “medical-grade micro-batteries” and a proprietary power management integrated circuit, Mojo Lens developed its power management technology.
For tracking, the Mojo Lens makes use of a magnetometer, accelerometer, and gyroscope that have been custom-configured (as mentioned by CNET). Perkins noted that the idea is to keep AR visible even as you shift your eyes around. Because Ray-Ban Stories don’t feature gesture control, you’ll need to move your eyes a lot. A Mojo Vision representative confirmed to Ars Technica that voice control is available, but the primary mode of user interface control is eye-tracking.
Smart glasses have a number of challenges, not the least of which is how bulky and out of place they may appear. To counter this, some devices, such as Stories and Nreal Air, take on the appearance of sunglasses.
AR headwear disguised as Ray-Bans may not be as unobtrusive as a contact lens, but it’s possible. The current version, on the other hand, uses a “relay attachment,” as Mojo Vision’s spokesman characterised it, that’s attached to the neck. For transmitting and receiving data to and from the lens, the camera has a processor, a GPU, and a 5 GHz radio “Back to computers that track eye movement data for research,” says CNET of this device’s functionality. Perkins’ blog stated that bespoke ASIC designs were required for this technology.
Given the way things are right now, that appears to be a significant disadvantage for customers. Being compelled to wear anything around your neck, no matter how insignificant it may be, can be an annoyance. In addition, it is not evident to what degree the equipment gets warm.
According to CNET, the present prototype also has a hat that has an inbuilt antenna for the purpose of making connecting more straightforward; however, we anticipate that this feature will be removed from the final version.
The Mojo Lens, which might be the first augmented reality contact lens available to customers, does not yet have a definite release date. In the short term, we want to achieve a number of goals, including getting possible partners, investors, and journalists to test out the smart lens.
“With this advancement, we now have a testing platform that helps us refine and build Mojo Lens that will ultimately lead to submission to the FDA for market approval,” Perkins wrote. “To accomplish this, we will conduct several clinical studies to test capabilities and provide feedback on software and apps.”
According to what was said on Perkins’ blog, during the next decade it’s possible that individuals may start wearing smart contacts. He envisioned a scenario in which athletes would wear smart contacts in order to have more concentrated and intense training. He also discussed the use of smart contacts to display useful information, such as the estimated arrival time of an Uber to pick someone up from the airport or information regarding one’s physical and mental wellbeing.
