Thanks to the latest developments of technology, a British soldier who got seriously wounded in Iraq, and lost his sight due to the wounds, is now capable of recognizing shapes around him, walking without aid and even read, thanks to BrainPort, a device which uses electro-tactile stimulations as a surrogate of eyesight.
At a first glance, it looks just like your MP3 player, but it is connected on one end with a pair of special glasses, while on the other end there is a sensor, similar to the one that your dentist would use to take a dental X-ray, which is placed under its user’s tongue.
Inside these glasses, there is a small video camera connected to the sensor by means of a small tube. The camera sends signals to the sensor via this tube, and thanks to tiny electrical pulses it is possible to recognize lines and shapes, which are then turned into two-dimensional black and white images.
This system is still in its experimental stage, in fact the tube which connects the glasses to the sensor makes it mandatory for its user to keep his mouth closed, thus making it impossible to carry out normal activities like eating, drinking or talking.
To solve this problem, researchers are considering the idea of placing a fixed sensor, to be located for example behind the dental arc. The soldier on whom it is being tested is fully satisfied, and although he is certainly far from having a normal life, certainly BrainPort is doing a lot for his morals.
For people with a very low eyesight (but not blind), an interesting remedy could be using a pair of night vision glasses, which work on a similar principle, as they use a camera which projects images directly on the patient’s retina, allowing him to get oriented normally and without assistance, by day or even at night.