Researchers at England's Ghent University have been applying modern smartphone-specific technology to its development of 21st century contact lenses. In the school's promotional video, images are displayed across the front of the thin plastic pieces.
Professors made use of LCD display screens to stream text and pictures on the front of these contemporary contact lenses. The product is still in its preliminary stages however, and it has yet to be decided what it will be used for exactly.
The device may very well be tied to smartphone-oriented tools, exhibiting text messages and e-mails directly across the eyeball. It at the same time is appropriate for practical functions, seen in the summer as it can block harsh sun rays.
What's Driving This Trend
- Smart Contact Lenses
- Opportunity for a new device category and ecosystem around wearable technology for vision applications
- Augmented Reality Contact Lenses
- Opportunity to expand AR experiences to the body and to develop a more seamless and less obtrusive display technology
- Health-monitoring Contact Lenses
- Opportunity to integrate biometric sensors into contact lenses for health tracking and diagnostics
Who This Affects Most
- Consumer Electronics
- Opportunity to create a new product category within consumer electronics and a potential partnership with wearable tech companies
- Healthcare
- Opportunity to revolutionize ophthalmology and eyecare with new diagnostic and monitoring capabilities
- Fashion
- Opportunity to merge fashion with technology, bringing together two consumer markets and creating a new niche for fashionable wearable technology
