Development of Bionic Eye Technology
Tabinda Salman
Dear fellows,
There are millions of people with visual impairments or blindness. The main reason behind these impairments is retinal disease macular degeneration of the optic nerve due to age. The good news is that a new revolutionary technology has just landed named artificial vision, which is their problem. Researchers and scientists across the globe have been working day and night to introduce different treatments and technological innovations for an effective treatment for visual complications and blindness.
Who said if you have a visual impairment, you will be blind?? Today scientists have succeeded in providing the best possible, effective, and cutting-edge technology for the treatment of this problem. Yes, they have developed innovative technology that will allow blind people to see. The future for our new generation concerning visual power is here to stay. A new revolutionary device has been developed after a lot of trials. This modern technology will enable foe the restoration of visual capacities to the blind or neurologically impaired, thus helping the blind regain their vision. The use of the bionic eye has always been around in science fiction. The researchers suggest that this bionic eye can work in more detail than the human eye. The bionic eye can restore sight and enable one to see in the dark.
Background
Scientists are continually working on stem cell research to regrow the eyes. With the advancement, outstanding work was initiated by academics from the Northumbia University and the Harbin Institute of Technology in China. Finally, a hardworking team of researchers and bio-medical students at the Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, has brought this hard to believe, miraculous machine into reality. They invented the World's first Bionic eye implant. This outstanding work is for the improvement of a digitally fortified vision. The high-tech bionic eye is designed in a way that it can be implanted into the existing eye structure. It is designed to be connected to the brain. This allows the return of visual functions instead of replacing the original eye with the cosmetic one. This highly effective new bionic eye is currently used for blind people having severe eye disease.
The bionic eye
The bionic eye is simply an electrical and mechanical device. It enables blind people to regain their vision. It is also known as the bioelectronic eye. The bionic eye comprises an electronic system with processors, sensors, receivers, radio transmitters, and a retinal chip connected in a single domain. The bionic eye has an electrode array inserted into the eye surgically. This insertion involves some external components, which capture images and translate them into electrical signals. These external components are based on the memories, processing units, and physically segregated sensors. The researchers have a firm belief that the bionic eye is stable and safe for long-term implantation.
Working process of the bionic eye
The researchers worked hard to develop such an accurate device that can improve the quality of vision for people and can control the artificial synapses in the bionic retina. As a result, improvement in electrical conductivity increases which eventually reduces power consumption. In addition, researchers added a soft metal element known as indium into a 2-dimensional molybdenum disulphide material. As a result, these artificial optical synapses produce high-quality images. During implantation, the surgeons implant the bionic eye on the retina. Next, the user has to put on a specially constructed helmet with a camera and a wireless transmitter. The camera converts the images into electrical impulses which activate the retinal cells and carry the signals to the brain. The signals from the receiver are received by a set of 9 mm tiles implanted in the brain, which enables the patient to see the black and white pixelized vision.
Advancement in vision improvement
The optical field has improved a lot in the past few years. Various scientists have been working on providing the solution to different eye impairments. In 2020, a group of Belgian scientists had developed an artificial iris. This artificially constructed iris can be fitted to smart contact lenses. It provides vision to the patients having less to no vision. In the year 2021, a group of Israeli surgeons have successfully inserted the World's first artificial cornea into a 78-year-old man who was blind in both eyes. Now scientists are even developing wireless brain implants. It can help patients to use their eyes without using glasses.
Limitations of the bionic eye
· Implantation of the bionic eye to the retina is not a problem. The problem is connecting the device to the human brain.
· The human brain must be trained to use the bionic eye for vision.
· In a person with visual impairment or complete blindness, the nerves gradually stop transmitting signals to the brain. In some cases, the nerves might shrink or die. In such cases, when the bionic eye is implanted, it does not work. The nervous system and the brain require training to be able and functional to use the device effectively. It requires years to train the nervous system to use a new device.
· Bionic eye implant is not an easy practice. There are just a few bionic eyes available. Mass production is not currently happening. Patients have to wait for long periods for implants.
· The material used to develop this high-tech bionic eye is quite expensive. Unfortunately, it is not affordable for everyone.
· The bionic eye currently available is suitable for the person who has blindness caused by specific eye diseases only.
· The bionic eye is not accessible to many countries of the World.
· It is not for Glaucoma patients.
· Research is going on, so the result produced by this technology is not 100%.
On behalf of NAYS-Pakistan, we are grateful to our fellow researchers for developing such a great visual prosthetic or the visual device that restores the functionality of a person suffering from partial or complete blindness. It is truly a blessing or a miracle to the visually impaired person or the person suffering from an inherited retinal degenerative disease that results in blindness at old age.
Article: Ms. Sundeela Fayyaz
Best Regards,
Chief coordinator
National Academy of Young Scientists (NAYS) Pakistan,