How do Electronic Smart Glasses Work?
Glasses… for years, we’ve worn them to correct poor vision and uneven eyesight between eyes. But now comes a way to change your vision completely.
PixelOptics, based in Virginia, has launched a product called emPower which it says are the world’s first electronic smart glasses. The idea is that they’ll replace conventional bifocals and varifocal lenses.
Electronic Smart Glasses | How does it work?
In a pair of otherwise normal glasses, a microchip is hidden in the frame surrounding the lens which is accompanied by a micro-accelerometer and tiny batteries for the power. Both lenses have an invisible LCD layer which electronically changes the molecular structure, focusing when needed.
Light is refracted depending on how and where you’re looking; so if you move your head to watch the TV, the accelerometer will pick up on this movement and adjust accordingly, changing how the light is refracted and thus change the prescription.
You can also manually change the reading portion of the glasses by simply lightly touching the sides of the glasses to turn the feature on and off. If you tilt your head down, the reading part of the glasses will automatically turn on; whereas when you put your head back up, the reading part will disappear, but this feature can be turned on and off so you get exactly what you’re looking for in a pair of glasses… meaning you’re in total control of what you see and how you see it, at the touch of a button.
Will Electronic Smart Glasses Really Catch On?
The idea of electronic smart glasses is a novel one at that, and would mean you’d never peer out of the wrong portion of your glasses as may occur with progressive (bifocal and varifocal) lenses. But will it really catch on?
New technology – in all forms – is always welcomed…and pricey when it is first released! The emPower glasses, or electronic smart glasses, are said to cost around $1300 so won’t be something that is accessible to everyone but it will be interesting to see if this is something many people opt for.
With modern day life consisting of so many technological advances, the smart glasses are a great idea. The cost will also cover battery packs, meaning you’ll be able to recharge your glasses like you do your cell phone.
Smart phones are incredibly popular, so it’ll be interesting to see if the popularity of these smart glasses is in the same wave.
What do you think? Do you feel that electronic smart glasses will catch on? Leave a comment below.
About the guest blogger: Amy writes for Direct Sight, a leading provider of glasses online including varifocal glasses.