Wink-and-zoom contact lenses no longer just a fantasy

Researchers have unveiled the latest version of a first-of-its-kind telescopic contact lens that allows the wearer to zoom in and out with the wink of an eye. The contact lenses have to be paired with smart glasses that recognise winks and ignore blinks to allow wearers to switch between normal and magnified vision. “We think these lenses hold a lot of promise for low vision and age-related macular degeneration ( AMD),” said Opt ics specialist Eric Tremblay from Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne in Switzerland.

There are glasses already on the market for people with AMD that have mounted telescopes, but they look bulky and interfere with social interaction. They also do not track eye movement. The first version of the telescopic contact lens was announced in 2013. Since then scientists have been fine-tuning the lens and developing accessories to make the eyewear smarter and more comfortable for longer periods.

The lenses work by incorporating a thin reflective telescope inside a 1.55mm thick lens. Small mirrors within bounce light around, expanding the perceived size of objects and magnifying the view; it’s like looking through low magnification binoculars.

The lenses are made from several precision cut and carefully assembled pieces of plastics, aluminium mirrors, and polarising thin films, along with biologically safe glues. Since the eye needs a steady supply of oxygen, researchers have spent the last couple of years making the lenses more breathable — a critical requirement.