Bionic Eye Research and Future Outlook

Bionic Eye: A Look into Current Research and Future Prospects

Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Technology has done wonders for the mankind. We have seen prosthetics that
helped overcome handicaps. Bio medical engineers play a vital role in shaping the course
of these prosthetics. Now it is the turn of Artificial Vision through Bionic Eyes.

Chips are designed specifically to imitate the characteristics of the damaged
retina, and the cones and rods of the organ of sight are implanted with a microsurgery.
Whether it be Bio medical, Computer, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineers – all of them
have a role to play in the personification of Bionic Eyes. There is hope for the blind in the
form of Bionic Eyes. This technology can add life to their vision less eyes!

Sooner or later, this shall create a revolution in the field of medicine. It is
important to know few facts about the organ of sight i.e. the Eye before we proceed
towards the technicalities involved.

1.1 The Eye

Our ability to see is the result of a process similar to that of a camera. This is
shown in fig 1.1. In a camera, light passes through a series of lenses that focus images
onto film or an imaging chip. The eye performs a similar function in that light passes

Fig 1.1: Eye-camera similarity.

Dept. of IT, GSSSIETW, Mysore 1


through the cornea and crystalline lens, which together focus images onto the retina—the
layer of light sensing cells that lines the back of the eye. The retina represents the film in
our camera. It captures the image and sends it to the brain to be developed.

Once stimulated by light, the cells within the retina process the images by
converting their analog light signals into digital electro-chemical pulses that are sent via
the optic nerve to the brain. A disruption or malfunction of any of these processes can
result in loss of vision.

1.2 How are We Able to See?

For vision to occur, 2 conditions need to be met:
a) An image must be formed on the retina to stimulate its receptors (rods and cones).
b) Resulting nerve impulses must be conducted to the visual areas of the cerebral cortex
for interpretation.

Fig 1.2: The Eye

Four processes focus light rays, so that they form a clear image on the retina:
1. Refraction of light rays
2. Accommodation of the lens
3. Constriction of the pupil
4. Convergence of the eyes



1.3 Retina

The retina is the innermost layer of the wall of the eyeball. Fig 1.3 shows the
structure of Retina and fig 1.4 shows the Eye with Retina. Millions of light sensitive cells
there absorb light rays and convert them to electrical signals. Light first enters the optic
(or nerve) fiber layer and the ganglion cell layer, under which most of the nourishing
blood vessels of the retina are located. This is where the nerves begin, picking up the
impulses from the retina and transmitting them to the brain.

The light is received by photoreceptor cells called rods (responsible for peripheral
and dim light vision) and cones (providing central, bright light, fine detail, and colour
vision). The photoreceptors convert light into nerve impulses, which are then processed
by the retina and sent through nerve fibers to the brain. The nerve fibers exit the eyeball at
the optic disk and reach the brain through the optic nerve. Directly beneath the
photoreceptor cells is a single layer of retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells, which
nourish the photoreceptors. These cells are fed by the blood vessels in the choroids.

LIGHT
Fig 1.3: Retina



Fig 1.4: The retinal layers

1.4 Retinal Disease
There are two important types of retinal degenerative disease:
a) Retinitis pigmentosa (RP), and
b) Age-related macular degeneration (AMD)
They are detailed below.

Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is a general term for a number of diseases that
predominately affect the photoreceptor layer or ―light sensing‖ cells of the retina. These
diseases are usually hereditary and affect individuals earlier in life. Injury to the
photoreceptor cell layer, in particular, reduces the retina’s ability to sense an initial light
signal. Despite this damage, however, the remainder of the retinal processing cells in
other layers usually continues to function. RP affects the mid-peripheral vision first and
sometimes progresses to affect the far-periphery and the central areas of vision. The
narrowing of the field of vision into ―tunnel vision‖ can sometimes result in complete
blindness.

Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) refers to a degenerative condition
that occurs most frequently in the elderly. AMD is a disease that progressively decreases
the function of specific cellular layers of the retina’s macula. The affected areas within
the macula are the outer retina and inner retina photoreceptor layer. As for macular
degeneration, it is also genetically related, it degenerates cones in macula region, causing
damage to central vision but spares peripheral retina, which affects their ability to read



and perform visually demanding tasks. Although macular degeneration is associated with
aging, the exact cause is still unknown.

Together, AMD and RP affect at least 30 million people in the world. They are the
most common causes of untreatable blindness in developed countries and, currently, there
is no effective means of restoring vision.



Chapter 2
NEED FOR BIONIC EYE

The absence of effective therapeutic remedies for Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) has motivated the development of
experimental strategies to restore some degree of visual function to affected patients.
Because the remaining retinal layers are anatomically spared, several approaches have
been designed to artificially activate this residual retina and thereby the visual system.

It has been shown that electric stimulation of retinal neurons can produce
perception of light in patients suffering from retinal degeneration. Using this property we
can make use of the functional cells to retain the vision with the help of electronic devices
that assist this cells in performing the task of vision, we can make these lakhs of people
get back their vision at least partially. A design of an optoelectronic retinal prosthesis
system that can stimulate the retina with resolution corresponding to a visual activity of
20/80—sharp enough to orient yourself toward objects, recognize faces, read large fonts,
watch TV and, perhaps most important, lead an independent life. The researchers hope
their device may someday bring artificial vision to those blind due to retinal degeneration.

2.1 What is a Bionic Eye?

A visual prosthesis often referred to as a bionic eye or retinal implant, is an
experimental visual device intended to restore functional vision. A visual prosthetic or
bionic eye is a form of neural prosthesis intended to partially restore lost vision or
amplify existing vision. It usually takes the form of an externally-worn camera that is
attached to a stimulator on the retina, optic nerve, or in the visual cortex, in order to
produce perceptions in the visual cortex. Bionic eye restores the vision lost due to damage
of retinal cells.

A Bionic Eye is a device, which acts as an artificial eye. It is a broad term for the
entire electronics system consisting of the image sensors, processors, radio transmitters &
receivers, and the retinal chip. The device is a circle about the size of a five-cent piece,
inserted into the eye where the retina sits. It is a silicon chip which decodes the radio
signals and delivers the stimulations. When these electrodes are stimulated they send
messages to the retinal ganglion cells through small wires and then to the optic nerve to


the brain, which is able to perceive patterns of light and dark spots corresponding to
which electrodes have been stimulated. The device receives signals from a pair of glasses
worn by the patient, which are fitted with a camera.

The camera feeds the visual information into a separate image-processing unit,
which makes 'sense' of the image by extracting certain features. The unit then breaks
down the image into pixels and sends the information, one pixel at a time, to the silicon
chip, which then reconstructs the image. Data is broadcasted into the body using radio
waves. It's like a radio station that only has a range of 25 millimeters.

Currently the technology is only able to transmit a 10 x 10 pixel. Participants must
be profoundly blind to be eligible — those with even partial vision are excluded due to
the potential risk of visual damage.

The most recent version of the implant features an array of 60 pixels, allowing
users to distinguish between light and dark, and see certain distinct objects. The ultimate
goal, according to the research team, is to allow for reading and face recognition by
increasing the number of pixels to 1,000.

2.2 The Bionic Eye System

Visual prosthetics can be broken into three major groups. First, there are the
devices that use either ultrasonic sound or a camera to sample the environment ahead of
an individual and render the results into either a series of sounds or a tactile display. From
this the person is supposed to be able to discern the shape and proximity of objects in
their path.

The second major form is retina enhancers. These machines supplement functions
of the retina by stimulating the retina with electrical signals which in turn causes the
retina to send the results through the optic nerve to the brain.

The third major category of visual prosthetic is a digital camera that samples an
image and stimulates the brain with electrical signals--either by penetrating into or
placing electrodes on the surface of the visual cortex.



2.3 Retinal Implant Systems

Now, a company called Second Sight has received FDA approval to begin U.S.
trials of a retinal implant system that gives blind people a limited degree of vision.
Second Sight’s first generation Argus 16 implant consists of a 16 electrode array and a
relatively large implanted receiver implanted behind the ear. The second generation
Argus II is designed with a 60 electrode array and a much smaller receiver that is
implanted around the eye.

It (Argus II) is an array of electrodes that is surgically implanted onto the retina –
the layer of specialized cells that normally respond to light found at the back of the eye.
This array of electrodes is able to send signals to the brain that the person’s biological
retina is unable to send. Of course, the electrode array is not very useful unless it is
receiving visual data to send to the brain. To solve this problem the patient is fitted with a
pair of glasses that contain a tiny video camera that continuously records footage of what
is in front of the patient. This video signal is sent wirelessly to a wearable computer that
first filters and processes the video signal and then feeds this formatted data to the
electrode array. A picture of the entire setup can be shown in fig 2.1.

Fig 2.1: Argus II



The Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System can provide sight -- the detection of
light -- to people who have gone blind from degenerative eye diseases like macular
degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. Both diseases damage the eyes' photoreceptors,
the cells at the back of the retina that perceive light patterns and pass them on to the brain
in the form of nerve impulses, where the impulse patterns are then interpreted as images.
The Argus II system takes the place of these photoreceptors.

The second incarnation of Second Sight's retinal prosthesis consists of five main
parts:
a) A digital camera that's built into a pair of glasses. It captures images in real time and
sends images to a microchip.
b) A video-processing microchip that's built into a handheld unit. It processes images
into electrical pulses representing patterns of light and dark and sends the pulses to a
radio transmitter in the glasses.
c) A radio transmitter that wirelessly transmits pulses to a receiver implanted above the
ear or under the eye.
d) A radio receiver that sends pulses to the retinal implant by a hair-thin implanted wire.
e) A retinal implant with an array of 60 electrodes on a chip measuring 1 mm by 1 mm.

The entire system runs on a battery pack that is housed with the video processing
unit. When the camera captures an image -- of, say, a tree – the image is in the form of
light and dark pixels. It sends this image to the video processor, which converts the tree-
shaped pattern of pixels into a series of electrical pulses that represent "light" and "dark".

The processor sends these pulses to a radio transmitter on the glasses, which then
transmits the pulses in radio form to a receiver implanted underneath the subject's skin.
The receiver is directly connected via a wire to the electrode array implanted at the back
of the eye, and it sends the pulses down the wire. When the pulses reach the retinal
implant, they excite the electrode array. The array acts as the artificial equivalent of the
retina's photoreceptors. The electrodes are stimulated in accordance with the encoded
pattern of light and dark that represents the tree, as the retina's photoreceptors would be if
they were working (except that the pattern wouldn't be digitally encoded).

The electrical signals generated by the stimulated electrodes then travel as neural
signals to the visual center of the brain by way of the normal pathways used by healthy



eyes -- the optic nerves. In macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa, the optical
neural pathways aren't damaged. The brain, in turn, interprets these signals as a tree and
tells the subject, "You're seeing a tree."

2.4 Working

The working of Retinal implant system is shown in fig 2.2. Normal vision begins
when light enters and moves through the eye to strike specialized photoreceptor (light-
receiving) cells in the retina called rods and cones. These cells convert light signals to
electric impulses that are sent to the optic nerve and the brain. Retinal diseases like age-
related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa destroy vision by annihilating these
cells.

With the artificial retina device, a miniature camera mounted in eyeglasses
captures images and wirelessly sends the information to a microprocessor (worn on a
belt) that converts the data to an electronic signal and transmits it to a receiver on the eye.
The receiver sends the signals through a tiny, thin cable to the microelectrode array,
stimulating it to emit pulses. The artificial retina device thus bypasses defunct
photoreceptor cells and transmits electrical signals directly to the retina’s remaining
viable cells. The pulses travel to the optic nerve and, ultimately, to the brain, which
perceives patterns of light and dark spots corresponding to the electrodes stimulated.

Patients learn to interpret these visual patterns. It takes some training for subjects
to actually see a tree. At first, they see mostly light and dark spots. But after a while, they
learn to interpret what the brain is showing them, and they eventually perceive that
pattern of light and dark as a tree.

Researchers are already planning a third version that has a1000 electrodes on the
retinal implant, which they believe could allow for reading, facial recognition capabilities
etc.
1: Camera on glasses views image
2: Signals are sent to hand-held device
3: Processed information is sent back to glasses and wirelessly transmitted to receiver
under surface of eye
4: Receiver sends information to electrodes in retinal implant



5: Electrodes stimulate retina to send information to brain.

Fig 2.2: Working of Retinal Implant System



Chapter 3

OCULAR IMPLANT

Ocular implants are those which are placed inside the retina. It aims at the
electrical excitation of two dimensional layers of neurons within partly degenerated
retinas for restoring vision in blind people. The implantation can be done using standard
techniques from ophthalmic surgery. Neural signals farther down the pathway are
processed and modified in ways not really understood therefore, the earlier the electronic
input is fed into the nerves the better. There are two types of ocular implants: Epi-retinal
implants and Subretinal implants. The ocular implantation is shown in Fig 2.3.

Fig 3.1: Section of the eye showing the retina and its layers. In conditions such as retinitis
pigmentosa and macular degeneration, the light sensing rod and cone cells
("photoreceptors") no longer function. A retinal prosthesis can be placed either on
the retinal surface ("epi-retinal") or below the retina in the area of damaged
photoreceptors ("sub-retinal") to try to stimulate the remaining cells

.



3.1 Epi-Retinal Implants

The ―Epiretinal‖ approach involves a semiconductor-based device placed above
the retina, close to or in contact with the nerve fiber layer retinal ganglion cells. The
information in this approach must be captured by a camera system before transmitting
data and energy to the implant.

In the EPI-RET approach scientists had developed a micro contact array which is
mounted onto the retinal surface to stimulate retinal ganglion cells. A tiny video camera is
mounted on eyeglasses and it sends images via radio waves to the chip. The actual visual
world is captured by a highly miniaturized CMOS camera embedded into regular
spectacles. The camera signal is analyzed and processed using receptive field algorithms
to calculate electric pulse trains which are necessary to adequately stimulate ganglion
cells in the retina.

This signal together with the energy supply is transmitted wireless into a device
which is implanted into the eye of the blind subject. The implant consists of a receiver for
data and energy, a decoder and array microelectrodes placed on the inner surface of the
retina. This micro chip will stimulate viable retinal cells. Electrodes on microchip will
then create a pixel of light on the retina, which can be sent to the brain for processing.

The main advantage of this is that it consists of only a simple spectacle frame with
camera and external electronics which communicates wirelessly with microchip
implanted on retina programmed with stimulation pattern.

Fig 3.2: Block diagram of the EPI-RET System



The issues involved in the design of the retinal encoder are:
a) Chip Development
b) Biocompatibility
c) RF Telemetry and Power Systems

a) Chip Development:

Encoder Epi Retinal

The design of an epiretinal encoder is more complicated than the sub retinal
encoder, because it has to feed the ganglion cells. Here, a retina encoder (RE) outside the
eye replaces the information processing of the retina. A retina stimulator (RS), implanted
adjacent to the retinal ganglion cell layer at the retinal 'output', contacts a sufficient
number of retinal ganglion cells/fibers for electrical stimulation. A wireless (Radio
Frequency) signal and energy transmission system provides the communication between
RE and RS. The RE, then, maps visual patterns onto impulse sequences for a number of
contacted ganglion cells by means of adaptive dynamic spatial filters. This is done by a
digital signal processor, which, handles the incoming light stimuli with the master
processor, implements various adaptive, antagonistic, receptive field filters with the other
four parallel processors, and generates asynchronous pulse trains for each simulated
ganglion cell output individually. These spatial filters as biology-inspired neural networks
can be 'tuned' to various spatial and temporal receptive field properties of ganglion cells
in the primate retina.

b) Biocompatibility:

The material used for the chips and stimulating electrodes should satisfy a variety
of criteria’s. They must be corrosion-proof, i.e. bio stable.
 The electrodes must establish a good contact to the nerve cells within fluids, so
that the stimulating electric current can pass from the photo elements into the
tissue.
 It must be possible to manufacture these materials with micro technical methods.
 They must be biologically compatible with the nervous system.



c) RF Telemetry:

In case of the epiretinal encoder, a wireless RF telemetry system acts as a channel
between the Retinal Encoder and the retinal stimulator. Standard semiconductor
technology is used to fabricate a power and signum receiving chip, which drives current
through an electrode array and stimulate the retinal neurons. The intraocular transceiver
processing unit is separated from the stimulator in order to take into account the heat
dissipation of the rectification and power transfer processes. Care is taken to avoid direct
contact of heat dissipating devices with the retina.

3.2 Sub Retinal Implants

Fig 3.3: Sub retinal Implant

The ―Sub retinal‖ approach involves the electrical stimulation of the inner retina
from the sub retinal space by implantation of a semiconductor-based micro photodiode
array (MPA) into this location. The concept of the sub retinal approach is that electrical
charge generated by the MPA in response to a light stimulus may be used to artificially
alter the membrane potential of neurons in the outer retina or remnants of this structure
and thereby activate the visual system. Because the implant is designed to stimulate the
retina at an early stage of the visual system, this approach would theoretically allow the
normal processing networks of the retina to transmit this signal centrally.

In Retinitis pigmentosa disease, the retinal pigment epithelial cells (RPE) begin to
die out and the person starts loosing the vision gradually. Since the function of the retina
to transduce light into biological signal is weakened, it causes blindness. Subretinal



implant is used to substitute the lost RPE cells with the ones of artificial basis to restore
the vision. In this implant, a microphotodiode array (MPD), a silicon micromanufactured
device, or semiconductor microphotodiode array (SMA) is used. This piece of equipment
is placed behind the retina between the sclera and the bipolar cells. The incident light is
transformed into electrical potentials that excite the bipolar cells to form an image
sensation.

The arrays can be manufactured by various silicon manufacturing procedures.
MPD arrays are manufactured consistently with measurements of each stimulating unit as
20 μm X 20 μm, and adjacent units separated as 10 μm. The elements are produced to be
responsive to light corresponding to the visible spectrum (400-700 nm). Several
thousands of the devices can be placed on a single structure of diameter of 3 mm,
thickness of 100 μm and with a density same as the replacing RPE cells. These devices
have demonstrated the same electrophysiological behaviours as the healthy RPE cells.

The MPDA has to be very thin and flexible enough in order to be able to fit to the
curvature of the eye ball. Figure below shows an example of such an ultra thin MPDA
having a thickness of 1.5 micron, together with titanium substrate and silicon nitride
passivation.

Fig 3.4: Ultra thin microphotodiode array



In Subretinal implant, the light-sensitive microphotodiodes with microelectrodes
of gold and titanium nitride set in arrays is implanted in the subretinal space. The visible
light coming from different directions is transformed into small currents by the
microphotodiodes at each of hundreds of microelectrodes. These currents are then passed
to the retinal network by neurons. The middle and inner retina captures current and then
processes the part of vision. There are many benefits of using the subretinal prostheses.
Such as, the MPD directly replaces the lost or degenerated RPE cells; the retina’s
remaining network is still capable of processing electrical signals; ease of fixing the high
density MPDA in the subretinal position; no need of any external camera or external
image processing equipment; and eye movement to locate the objects is not restricted.

There are some of the limitations to the subretinal implants as well. The single
MPD is not enough to stimulate enough current. So a subretinal implant is supported by
an external energy source, such as transpupillary infrared illumination of receivers close
to the chip or electromagnetic transfer, is currently under progress. Some of the additional
developments in this process are movement to flexible substrates to hold the subtle nature
of the retina and to decrease the light intensity.

Fig 3.5: Shows the major difference between epi-retinal &sub retinal approach



Now, a German firm dubbed Retina Implant has scored a big win for the sub
retinal solution with a three-millimeter, 1,500 pixel microchip that gives patients a 12
degree field of view.
In general,
 Epiretinal Approach involves a semiconductor based device positioned on the
surface of the retina to try to simulate the remaining overlying cells.
 Subretinal Approach involves implanting the ASR chip behind the retina to
simulate the remaining viable cells.



Chapter 4

MULTIPLE UNIT ARTIFICIAL RETINA CHIPSET
(MARC)

The other revolutionary bio electronic eye is the MARC; this uses a CCD camera
input and a laser beam or RF to transmit the image into the chip present in the retina.
Using this, a resolution of 100 pixels is achieved by using a 10x10 array. It consists of a
platinum or rubber silicon electrode array placed inside the eye to stimulate the cells.

Fig 4.1: The MARC System

The schematic of the components of the MARC shown in fig 4.1, consists of a
secondary receiving coil mounted in close proximity to the cornea, a power and signal
transceiver and processing chip, a stimulation-current driver, and a proposed electrode
array fabricated on a material such as silicone rubber thin silicon or polyimide with
ribbon cables connecting the devices.

The stimulating electrode array is mounted on the retina while the power and
signal transceiver is mounted in close proximity to the cornea. An external miniature low-
power CMOS camera worn in an eyeglass frame will capture an image and transfer the
visual information and power to the intraocular components via RF telemetry. The
intraocular prosthesis will decode the signal and electrically stimulate the retinal neurons


through the electrodes in a manner that corresponds to the image acquired by the CMOS
Camera.

Fig 4.2: A 5x5 platinum electrode array for retinal stimulation fabricated on silicone
rubber and used by doctors at JHU

4.1 Working

The MARC system, pictured in the fig 4.3 will operate in the following manner.
An external camera will acquire an image, whereupon it will be encoded into data stream
which will be transmitted via RF telemetry to an intraocular transceiver. A data signal
will be transmitted by modulating the amplitude of a higher frequency carrier signal. The
signal will be rectified and filtered, and the MARC will be capable of extracting power,
data, and a clock signal. The subsequently derived image will then be stimulated upon the
patient’s retina.

4.1 (a) MARC System Block Diagram

Outside Eye:

The video input to the marc system block is given through a CCD camera. This
image is further processed using a PDA sized image processor & to transmit it, we do
pulse width modulation in first stage and then ASK modulation is done. This signal is
further amplified using a class E power amplifier and transmitted using RF telemetry
coils.

Inside Eye:

The signal received from the RF telemetry coils is power recovered and then these
signal is ASK demodulated and the data and clock is recovered from this signals and


these signal are sent to the configuration and control block of the chip which from its
input decode what information has to be sent to each of the electrodes and sends them this
data. And the electrodes in turn stimulate the cells in the eye so as to send this stimulation
to the brain through optic nerve and help brain in visualizing the image and while this
process is going on the status of each electrode is sent to the marc diagnostics chip
outside the eye.

Fig 4.3: Block Diagram of MARC System

4.1 (b) Block Diagram of Image Acquisition System

The image acquisition system consists of a CMOS digital camera which acquires
images and sends it to the Analog to Digital Converter. It converts this analog input to

Fig 4.4: Block Diagram of Image Acquisition System



digital data. This data is first sent into a video buffer where it is processed, the images are
color mapped and these processed images are sent through RS232 interface. This serial
data is then sent to the electrodes or testing monitor through a RF circuit or laser beam.

4.2 Advantages of the MARC System
 Compact Size – 6x6 mm
 Diagnostic Capability
 Reduction of stress upon retina
 Heat dissipation problems are kept to a minimum



Chapter 5

APPLICATIONS PROPOSED

 Adding displays directly onto the lenses, visible to the wearers but no one
else, could project critical information like routes, weather, vehicle status onto
windshields for drivers or pilots or superimpose computer images onto real-world
objects for training exercises.
 Besides visual enhancement, noninvasive monitoring of the wearer’s biomarkers
and health indicators could be extremely useful. Several simple sensors that can
detect the concentration of a molecule, such as glucose have been built onto
lenses. These would let diabetic wearers keep tabs on blood-sugar levels without
needing to prick a finger.
 Lenses remain in contact, through fluids, with the interior of the body and an
appropriately configured contact lens could monitor cholesterol, sodium, and
potassium levels, to name a few potential targets. Coupled with a wireless data
transmitter, the lens could relay information to medics or nurses instantly, without
needles or laboratory chemistry.
 Bionic lenses could aid people with impaired hearing.
 Future versions, the scientists believe, they could serve as a flexible plastic
platform for applications such as surfing the Internet on a virtual screen,
immersing gamers in virtual worlds.



Chapter 6

CHALLENGES

 Biology imposes limitations, such as the needs for a system that will not heat cells
by more than 1 degree Celsius and for electrochemical interfaces that aren't
corrosive.
 There are many very many obstacles to be overcome before Bionic Eyes become a
success story. Our eyes are perhaps the most sensitive of all organs in the human
body. A nano-sized irritant can create havoc in the eye.
 There are 120 million rods and 6 million cones in the retina of every healthy
human eye. Creating an artificial replacement for these is no easy task.
 Si based photo detectors have been tried in earlier attempts. But Si is toxic to the
human body and reacts unfavorably with fluids in the eye.
 There are many doubts as to how the brain will react to foreign signals generated
by artificial light sensors.
 Infection and negative reaction are the always-feared factors. It is imperative that
all precautionary measures need to be ascertained.
 One of the greatest challenges seems to be ensuring that the implant can remain in
the eye for decades or more without causing scarring, immune system responses,
and general degradation from daily biological wear and tear.
 These artificial retinas are still years away from becoming widespread because
they are too expensive, too clunky, and too fragile to withstand decades of normal
wear and tear.



Chapter 7
CONCLUSION

This is a revolutionary piece of technology and really has the potential to change
people's lives. Artificial Eye is such a revolution in medical science field. It’s good news
for patients who suffer from retinal diseases. A bionic eye implant that could help restore
the sight of millions of blind people could be available to patients within two years.
Retinal implants are able to partially restore the vision of people with particular
forms of blindness caused by diseases such as macular degeneration or retinitis
pigmentosa. About 1.5 million people worldwide have retinitis pigmentosa, and one in 10
people over the age of 55 have age related macular degeneration. The invention and
implementation of artificial eye could help those people.
But whatever be the pro and cons of this system, if this system is fully developed
it will change the lives of millions of people around the world. We may not restore the
vision fully, but we can help them to least be able to find their way, recognize faces, read
books, above all lead an independent life.



REFERENCES

[1] ―Bionic Eye: What does the future hold‖ by Jack Kerouac.

[2] ―A Bionic Eye comes to market‖ by Kurzweil Al.

WEB REFERENCES

[1] www.spectrum.ieee.org

[2] www.stanford.edu

[3] www.bionicvision.org.au

[4] www.visionaustralia.org

[5] www.wikipedia.org


Bionic Eye Research and Future Outlook

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