Scientists Will Soon Start Trials for Fully Implantable Bionic Eye
From: Medical Design technology - 01/30/2016
By: Sam Brusco

Australian scientists are ready to start trials of a fully implantable bionic
eye. The engineers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) have developed
the Phoenix99 bionic eye, which is expected to be able to restore vision
multiple times more effectively than current technologies. The scientists
have been researching the technology since 1997, to help those suffering from
retinitis pigmentosa, a condition that removes eyesight in around ten years,
usually beginning around age 30.

The implantation surgery should only span two to three hours. Further, the
implant’s only telltale mark is a tiny disc situated behind the ear, which
sends power and data to the device. Electrical impulses are then transmitted
to the back of the eye. Patients will also wear glasses equipped with a
camera, which helps to define nerve cells’ stimulation in the retina. This,
in turn, sends signals to the brain’s visual cortex.

Users must "learn" to use the device—the array of electrodes allows patients
to see "phosphenes" (spots of light) and the cameras help wearers get a sense
of distance. "Patients ‘learn’ to use the technology, in the same way a
person implanted with a cochlear ear implant 'learns' to hear electrical
impulses,”" said Gregg Sauning, one of the inventors.

Read the entire article and view a video (0:30) at:
http://www.mdtmag.com/videos/2016/01/scientists-will-soon-start-trials-fully-implantable-bionic-eye

Link:
An incredible vision
http://www.engineering.unsw.edu.au/news/an-incredible-vision

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